The Power & Value of a Well Defined & Executed Company Culture

The Presidents' Forum of Columbus
February 20, 2008

M. Cameron Mitchell
President
Cameron Mitchell Restaurants

Speaker Biography:
Cameron Mitchell, President of Columbus, Ohio based Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, knew since high school that he wanted to pursue a career in the restaurant business and set his sights on becoming President of a restaurant company by the age of 35. He set his goals, step-by-step and after graduating from the world-renowned Culinary Institute of America in 1986, began to achieve those goals, one by one. Mitchell began his rapid climb up the company ladder with the multi-concept, 10-unit Fifty-Five Restaurant Group, also of Columbus. But he left the company in 1992 after attaining the second-in-command post and realizing he had hit the ceiling. It was then he knew he had to start his own company, on his own terms.

In the fall of 1993, Cameron’s, a contemporary American bistro, wowed Columbus diners with its extraordinary dining experience. Achieving remarkable success in the highly competitive Columbus market, garnered Mitchell the attention of developers across the region and Cameron Mitchell Restaurants began to diversify and expand. In just fourteen years, while remaining independent and privately held, Cameron Mitchell Restaurants has grown to 33-units, including a catering division, operating in nine states with 9 different concepts. In addition to Cameron’s the concepts include, Cap City Fine Diner & Bar, Martini Italian Bistro, Mitchell’s Steakhouse, Mitchell’s Fish Market, Mitchell’s Ocean Club, M, Molly Woo’s Asian Bistro, and Marcella’s. In the fall of 2007, Mitchell announced the sale of the Fish Market and Steakhouse concepts (a total of 22 restaurants) for $94 million to Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, Inc. to be completed in 2008. In the future, Mitchell plans to continue to develop more new concepts and nationally grow those concepts which are in higher demand.

Mitchell credits the growth of his company to an imbedded culture and philosophy that begins “We believe in putting our associates first.” The company doesn’t just hire great people, but it also treats them great. This results in genuine hospitality that is exemplified in all major relationships from guest, to vendor to community. Cameron Mitchell Restaurants is driven to thrive based on it’s stated goal “To be better today than we were yesterday, and better tomorrow than we are today”

Like most restaurants across the country, Cameron Mitchell and his restaurant company place a high priority on community service. Mitchell is a founding board member of the Ohio Hospitality Education Foundation and has established scholarships in multiple culinary arts colleges. Additionally, Cameron Mitchell has served as the Ohio representative on the National Restaurant Association Board of Directors and is currently a Trustee and soon to be Vice-Chair on the Board of the Culinary Institute of America. Among numerous community and industry awards, he has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of the Year for the state of Ohio by Ernst & Young, Small Businessperson of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration, as a Concept of Tomorrow Visionary by Restaurant Hospitality twice, by Nation’s Restaurant News as One of 50 New Tastemakers, received a High Performance Restaurant Leadership award from Restaurant Business, and in 2005 received one of his most cherished accolades, the Richard Melman Concepts of Tomorrow Award, awarded by industry icon Richard Melman himself. In 2007, Mitchell achieved the pinnacle of industry recognition by receiving the highly coveted “Silver Plate” award from the International Foodservice Manufacturer’s Association in the Chain Full Service Category.

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