Cracker Barrel Shareholders Support All 10 of the Company's Recommended Director Nominees Per Preliminary Results

LEBANON, Tenn., Nov. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. ("Cracker Barrel" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:CBRL) today announced that the preliminary vote count from the Company's proxy solicitor indicates that its shareholders have voted to elect all 10 of Cracker Barrel's recommended nominees to the Company's Board of Directors at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders ("Annual Meeting"): Carl Berquist, Jody Bilney, Meg Crofton, Gilbert Dávila, John Garratt, Michael Goodwin, Cheryl Henry, Julie Masino, Gisel Ruiz, and Darryl "Chip" Wade. Sardar Biglari and Milena Alberti-Perez – who were nominated by entities Mr. Biglari controls and not recommended by the Board – did not receive sufficient shareholder support to be elected.

The Cracker Barrel Board issued the following statement:

We thank our shareholders for their constructive engagement over the past several months, and their overwhelming support today.

During the course of our engagement, we were heartened by how many shareholders understood and expressed support for the strategic imperatives that we are pursuing. We take seriously the trust they've placed in our directors to oversee the continued momentum of the Company's strategic transformation plan. We are encouraged by the early favorable results across our operations as the plan takes hold and remain confident that we are on the right path to return Cracker Barrel to growth and meaningful value creation for all shareholders. We look forward to continuing to engage with the Company's shareholders as we work to ensure Cracker Barrel thrives today, tomorrow, and well into the future.

We welcome Michael Goodwin to the Board and believe his decades of IT and strategic leadership will prove to be of great value in our boardroom. We also thank Tom Barr, who did not stand for re-election to the Board, for his service to Cracker Barrel's Board for more than 12 years.

The results announced today are considered preliminary until final results are tabulated and certified by the independent Inspector of Elections. Cracker Barrel will report final results on a Form 8-K that will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Forward-Looking Statements 

Except for specific historical information, certain of the matters discussed in this communication may express or imply projections of items such as revenues or expenditures, statements of plans and objectives or future operations or statements of future economic performance. These and similar statements regarding events or results that Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. ("Cracker Barrel" or the "Company") expects will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements concerning matters that involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results and performance of the Company to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All forward-looking information is provided pursuant to the safe harbor established under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and should be evaluated in the context of these risks, uncertainties and other factors. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "trends," "assumptions," "target," "guidance," "outlook," "opportunity," "future," "plans," "goals," "objectives," "expectations," "near-term," "long-term," "projection," "may," "will," "would," "could," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "potential," "regular," "should," "projects," "forecasts," or "continue" (or the negative or other derivatives of each of these terms) or similar terminology. 

The Company believes that the assumptions underlying any forward-looking statements are reasonable; however, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, and therefore, actual results may differ materially from those projected in or implied by the forward-looking statements. In addition to the risks of ordinary business operations, factors and risks that may result in actual results differing from this forward-looking information include, but are not limited to risks and uncertainties associated with inflationary conditions with respect to the price of commodities, ingredients, transportation, distribution and labor; disruptions to the Company's restaurant or retail supply chain; the Company's ability to manage retail inventory and merchandise mix; the Company's ability to sustain or the effects of plans intended to improve operational or marketing execution and performance, including the Company's strategic transformation plan; the effects of increased competition at the Company's locations on sales and on labor recruiting, cost, and retention; consumer behavior based on negative publicity or changes in consumer health or dietary trends or safety aspects of the Company's food or products or those of the restaurant industry in general, including concerns about outbreaks of infectious disease; the effects of the Company's indebtedness and associated restrictions on the Company's financial and operating flexibility and ability to execute or pursue its operating plans and objectives; changes in interest rates, increases in borrowed capital or capital market conditions affecting the Company's financing costs and ability to refinance its indebtedness, in whole or in part; the Company's reliance on a single distribution facility and certain significant vendors, particularly for foreign-sourced retail products; information technology disruptions and data privacy and information security breaches, whether as a result of infrastructure failures, employee or vendor errors or actions of third parties; the Company's compliance with privacy and data protection laws; changes in or implementation of additional governmental or regulatory rules, regulations and interpretations affecting tax, health and safety, animal welfare, pensions, insurance or other undeterminable areas; the actual results of pending, future or threatened litigation or governmental investigations; the Company's ability to manage the impact of negative social media attention and the costs and effects of negative publicity; the impact of activist shareholders; the Company's ability to achieve aspirations, goals and projections related to its environmental, social and governance initiatives; the Company's ability to enter successfully into new geographic markets that may be less familiar to it; changes in land, building materials and construction costs; the availability and cost of suitable sites for restaurant development and the Company's ability to identify those sites; the Company's ability to retain key personnel; the ability of and cost to the Company to recruit, train, and retain qualified hourly and management employees; uncertain performance of acquired businesses, strategic investments and other initiatives that the Company may pursue from time to time; the effects of business trends on the outlook for individual restaurant locations and the effect on the carrying value of those locations; general or regional economic weakness, business and societal conditions and the weather impact on sales and customer travel; discretionary income or personal expenditure activity of the Company's customers; implementation of new or changes in interpretation of existing accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP"); and other factors described from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), press releases, and other communications. Any forward-looking statement made by the Company herein, or elsewhere, speaks only as of the date on which made. The Company expressly disclaims any intent, obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in the Company's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.

About Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBRL) is on a mission to bring craveable, delicious homestyle food and unique retail products to all guests while serving up memorable, distinctive experiences that make everyone feel welcome. Established in 1969 in Lebanon, Tenn., Cracker Barrel and its affiliates operate approximately 660 company-owned Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations in 44 states and own the fast-casual Maple Street Biscuit Company. For more information about the company, visit www.crackerbarrel.com.

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Investor Contact:

Adam Hanan

(615) 443-9887

Okapi Partners LLC

(855) 208-8902

Media Contact:

Heidi Pearce

(615) 235-4135

Leigh Parrish, Tim Lynch

Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

(212) 355-4449

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SOURCE Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.