Lum's
Lum's was a family restaurant chain based in Florida, with locations in several states.
LUMS was founded in 1956 in Miami Beach, Florida, by Stuart and Clifford S. Perlman[1] when they purchased Lum's hot dog stand for $10,000. Over the next few years, the Perlman brothers opened three additional Lum's restaurants, for a total of four by 1961.[2]
Clifford Perlman, in addition to owning Lum's, had been serving as the president of Southern Wood Industries, Inc., resigned that position to work full-time for Lum's. Under the brothers, Lum's began aggressively expanding and franchising; the signature item was hot dogs steamed in beer. In 1969, Lum's, Inc. was admitted to the New York Stock Exchange.
Lum's, Inc. purchased Caesars Palace for $60 million in 1969. At that time, Caesars was a 500-room hotel-casino on the famous Las Vegas strip. The food operations of Lum's, Inc. were sold in 1971 to John Y. Brown, then chairman of Kentucky Fried Chicken along with a group of investors.[3] At the time of sale, the company owned and franchised 400 stores in the continental U.S., Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Europe.
In 1978, Wienerwald Holdings, A.G., a Swiss holding company and parent of the Wienerwald restaurant chain, under the direction of Friedrich Jahn, purchased the 273 restaurant chain from Brown.[4] However, Wienerwald had overextended itself and was forced to file for bankruptcy in 1982.
The original Lum's location closed in 1983.[5] There are two LUMS operating. One is in Bellevue, Nebraska, south of Omaha[6] In 2010 a Lum's opened in Seekonk, Massachusetts.[7]
Lum's in Seekonk Massachusetts is no longer open leaving the one in Bellevue, NE as the sole location
For a time in the 1970s, the company's commercial spokesman was Milton Berle.
References
- ↑ "S. PERLMAN, CO-FOUNDED LUMS CHAIN". San Jose Mercury News. January 6, 1988. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ "Lum's Chief: From Law to Hot Dogs". The New York Times. February 1, 1970. p. F12.
- ↑ Bamash, Isadore (July 24, 1971). "Resignation Denied By K.F.C. Chairman". The New York Times. pp. 31, 34.
- ↑ Tagliabue, John (July 18, 1981). "Wienerwald's U.S. Challenge". The New York Times. p. 29.
- ↑ "Lums first store to shut down". Miami Herald. May 22, 1983. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ "Lums Restaurant – Bellevue, NE". Yelp.com. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
- ↑ Providence Journal: "Things to Do - Lum's"
External links
- Lum's TV Commercial with Milton Berle
- The Daily Meal 11 biggest failed restaurant chains: Lum's