Luby's Cafeteria - Will changing the recipe improve performance? This brief case includes a SWOT analysis and recommendations for improving profit margins.

Luby's was founded in 1911 in Springfield, Missouri and currently (at the time Case 22 was published in 1999) has 223 locations in 11 states throughout the Midwestern, Southern and Southwestern US. Luby's is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange with no single organization owning more than 5.7 percent of its stock. Barry Parker, who is the company's president/CEO, is dealing with a falling stock price and profit margins that have been considerably shrinking over the …

…the population of the area, competition, costs and etc. The senior citizen and baby boomer target market should definitely be a consideration. The last recommendation is more of a lateral move involving vertically integrating the supply chain. If there are substantial enough profits to be made within the supplier's industry, and a large enough cost savings to the restaurant operations, then Luby's should consider either a joint venture with industry suppliers or acquiring suppliers themselves.