This evolution of this highly successful theme restaurant chain was a fluke, having come about initially as a result of our having licensed the Bubba Gump name for Meridian Products, a large frozen shrimp import/export firm I was attempting to help turn around and sell.

The name, of course, was that of the fictional shrimp company depicted in the hit movie Forrest Gump, and to use it, I had to broker a licensing arrangement between Meridian and Viacom/Paramount. When it subsequently became apparent to us that what we really needed was a restaurant outlet for the product, I set up a second licensing agreement between the studio and the Rusty Pelican, a restaurant chain that had just emerged from bankruptcy and was in need of a jump-start. That was 13 years ago, and I would never have guessed that the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurants we started would have become so successful, nor that the original branded shrimp product line would be gone from the scene.

Formula for Success Insights:

1) Create a buzz. Generating excitement and enthusiasm can go a long way toward fixing a company, and you can do it in a number of ways --through shared equity with a license, for example, or even by going to a movie. Pay attention to the quirks of pop culture and see what gets people excited and enthused, then attempt to take your tired product lines in that direction. Having the advantage of an instantly recognizable theme and the resources to exploit it, of course, can help tremendously.

Thanks to the box-office success of Forrest Gump, the Bubba Gump name was already familiar to millions of potential patrons, both here and abroad. The association with the studio also enabled the operation to benefit from a $100 million marketing budget for creating buzz that, coupled with a high-quality product, already had the public hooked whenever a new opening was announced.

2) Keep all aspects of the enterprise entertaining. That means both maintaining a lively, fun-oriented mood and atmosphere and hiring enthusiastic and positive employees who you can infuse with the excitement you’re trying to convey to customers. At Bubba Gump, every detail was designed with this in mind, from the “authentic” waterfront-shack-type décor and Forrest Gump memorabilia to such devices as the “Run Forrest Run” and “Stop Forrest Stop” license plates used to indicate whether a table needs servicing.

3) Construct the brand so as to avoid its becoming either too faddish or too fancy. Understand what your typical customer is looking for, and don’t shoot too high, even with a premium product like shrimp. And don’t depend too much on a theme that may eventually lose some of its popular appeal. Bubba Gump is an excellent example of both of these principles put into practice. The restaurants offers a moderately priced, varied and high-quality selection and festive, family oriented atmosphere that are designed to appeal to customers on their own merits once the novelty has worn off. Many of the younger diners, in fact, may not even be familiar with the movie that inspired the chain. (This was a prime consideration from the inception of the enterprise, when it was understood that no one on the team would refer to it as a “fad”.)

4) Accentuate the brand’s appeal through multiple merchandising tie-ins. Each Bubba Gump restaurant, for example features a store that offers a variety of merchandise (also available on the chain’s Web site) that includes theme cookbooks, apparel, and souvenirs, as well as specialty foods, giving the brand’s image an added and lasting dimension. During the first year, in fact, one of the best-selling items was the Bubba Gump “red hat” licensed by my friend Kenny Lee. Millions of dollars worth were sold, causing it to become an icon of sorts.