“It’s really a very, very good constructive pricing environment that we’ve seen right now, probably the best in recent history,” Goodyear CEO Richard J. Kramer said during a Feb. 11 earnings call.
The company looks to its competitors as it goes through its price increases, but they, too, charge more.
“There are nine competitors that we usually follow, and seven of the nine announced price increases in the first quarter, and one of those that hadn’t raised prices late last year,” Darren Wells, chief financial officer, said on the call. . Goodyear saw profit margins grow last year, partly driven by price increases.
Calculating the cost of beef
The restaurant family of which Outback Steakhouse is part, Bloomin’ Brands, plans to raise prices for all brands by about 5 percent to cover rising labor and food costs – and by combining that with efficiencies, it is succeeding increase profits.
“It became clear that the 3 percent pricing we discussed earlier was not enough to offset the increased inflationary pressures in our industry,” Christopher Meyer, Bloomin’ Brands chief financial officer, said of the latest quarter. “As we have not implemented a material menu price increase since 2019, we are confident that 5 percent is appropriate.”
Mr. Meyer noted that operating inflation was 4.9 percent and labor inflation was 8.9 percent in the last quarter of 2021, but the company had managed to increase its profits by improving efficiency by simplifying its menu and by combating food waste.
By 2022, he said, the company expects beef inflation “in the mid-to-high teens” and wage inflation “in the high single-digit range.”
