History Rainforest Cafe

The company has received industry recognition for its family-oriented restaurant and themed entertainment achievements. The retail area included in each unit offers items ranging from cooking sauces and personal accessories to children's toys and clothing. A majority of the merchandise carries the Rainforest Cafe brand name. The restaurants are located in the United States and abroad.

The Rainforest Cafe was incorporated in February 1994 by Steven Schussler; Berman led the private stock placement that allowed Schussler to bring his dream into reality. The doors opened for business in October 1994. Within a week the wait for a table was as much as three hours.

The family-oriented Rainforest Cafe operated in a restaurant industry segment dominated by businesses catering to adults, such as the Hard Rock Cafe, which reached the quarter century mark in 1996. Rainforest Cafe liquor sales, for example, were comparatively low. Passersby in the malls could watch the daily on-site educational presentations, which included resident parrots, and an outreach program conducted in schools and for other community groups focused on vanishing habitats and wildlife.

Rainforest Cafe, like the other theme restaurants, drew a horde of customers with the promise of entertainment. Planet Hollywood's Disney store was pulling in more than $40 million a year. Altogether, the restaurant niche reported an estimated half billion dollars a year in sales and was expected to climb to $5 billion by the year 2000, according to a 1996 Star Tribune article by Ann Merrill.

The Rainforest Cafe hoped to build future revenue from its growing children's retail line as well as from added restaurants. Small units outside major tourist areas were being considered for the domestic front, while the company continued to search for high traffic locations overseas. Five exclusive international licensing agreements allowing a total of 24 units were already in place in the United Kingdom and Ireland, Mexico, Canada,and Asia.