Need to know
- Julia Stewart, CEO of DineEquity Inc
- In a podcast appearance in April 2025, she explained that the head of the restaurant company provided her with the position of CEO. Time is up, he said he won't give her a job
- After leaving Applebee, she moved to IHOP, and later she had the opportunity to acquire the restaurant and fire the man who refused to promote her
The former head of IHOP has been described as a “lime killer” because she claimed she had burned her bold business move by Applebee's CEO and chairman a few years ago.
In April 2025 appearance Matthews' Mindset PodcastJulia Stewart recalls a conversation she had with the head of Applebee, as IHOP bought the company for $2.3 billion in the 2000s.
Stewart explained that she had served as president of Applebee before. She was allegedly promised that she would become CEO if she could make money from the company.
She took on the challenge and put in hard work before allegedly getting some bad news.
Julia Stewart.
Jin Lee/Bloomberg/Getty
“So I went out, almost starting with a new team, and it's the best I could have found. To this day, most of them are good friends. But what we did was amazing.”
About three years later, she managed to reshape the company and make it successful. This led to a meeting with the former CEO and chairman who received some life-changing news.
She recalled, “I took my little picture, right?
Stewart continued: “He was reflective; he paused for a minute. I'm sure it was 10 seconds. It felt like a minute and a half. He said, 'No.' I thought he meant: “No, not today. “I smiled and said, “No, I'm not suggesting what I want to show.” “No, never.”
She asked why, and he told her he[didn’t] There must be an answer. ”
When asked how she answered, Stewart explained that she took a step back because she didn't want to react when she was angry.
“I said, 'I want to forgive myself. I'm going to go home early, I'm going to reflect on this conversation, 'It's the only thing I can think of. The next day, I came back and said, 'You know, I've thought of it, I think you're responsible for everything. But you didn't give me a title, so I'm going to keep going and leave,' she said. “He said, 'Okay, no. You can't leave. If you leave the stock, you will be tanked. ' ”
Julia Stewart.
Wilbert Roberts/Getty
Eventually, the two reached an agreement that Stewart “will stay for a few months” to find a way to transition the team without causing financial damage.
After that, she ended up working on IHOP and it took her “good five years” to turn the company around.
“When I got there, it didn’t have comparable growth,” she said, adding that it “really struggled” and lacked “brand image.”
After success, she realized that they should buy another brand to continue growing.
“I went to the board and said, 'We might need to look for acquisitions because if we can't find one, we will maturely take over. But I promise you, I will be thorough and attentive, myself and the team, looking for something that will be wow.”
When she did the research, she realized that Applebee's possible “really interesting”.
“Now, obviously, in the end, you're not going to borrow $2.3 billion to take revenge. You just don't do that,” Stewart said. “But we did borrow $2.3 billion. We did buy Applebee's.”
After formalization, she said she called Applebee's CEO and chairman to say they had purchased the company. Since they got it, she said they “don't need both of us” and she “will have to let go”.