Pink Lobster could have fallen into some monetary hassle in 2024 however it made a significant funding within the aftermath that’s lastly paying off. When the seafood large named Damola Adamolekun as its CEO final August, it signaled a brand new chapter for the chain that gave the world cheddar bay biscuits and a thousand date nights. Now the model is prospering once more and it has Adamolekun to thank.
Younger, sensible, and unapologetically Black, Adamolekun is bringing a recent technique and critical enterprise chops to some of the iconic American manufacturers. Right here’s what you’ll want to find out about him:
1. He’s the definition of Younger, Gifted, and BlackAt simply 36 years previous, Damola Adamolekun is operating the present. A primary-generation Nigerian-American, Ivy League grad, and former Wall Road investor, he’s breaking boundaries in an trade the place Black management continues to be the exception, not the rule. His journey is proof that Black excellence isn’t just thriving — it’s redefining company management.
He additionally bought his begin in eating places sooner than you may suppose — ready tables in highschool. But it surely wasn’t simply meals service the place he made an early impression. As he just lately shared on The Breakfast Membership, he additionally dominated the controversy circuit and found a love for investing whereas nonetheless an adolescent.
“I received the state championship for debate, then I received a speech contest, which paid me $10,000. It was a scholarship. And it was probably the most cash I’d ever had at that time, I’m like, ‘Okay, we made it.’ And I made a decision I needed to speculate that cash.”
That early curiosity sparked one thing greater. “I learn something about [Warren] Buffet,” he mentioned. “You should buy shares with $100, you should buy shares at $10,000. You should buy shares in tens of millions of {dollars}… So I realized that and form of skilled myself and requested a bunch of questions of people that I knew that had been doing that form of factor.”
He finally made it to Brown College, performed soccer there, joined the funding membership, and landed a coveted Goldman Sachs internship — all by outworking expectations. “I didn’t come from that world, however I studied… you’ll want to acknowledge that who you are actually isn’t who you’re going to be in the end, and you’ll want to take steps in the direction of your objectives.”
2. He was the primary Black CEO of P.F. Chang’s — and turned it right into a billion-dollar brandIn 2020, Adamolekun grew to become P.F. Chang’s first Black CEO. Throughout his tenure, Adamolekun impressed the corporate to launch P.F. Chang’s To Go, an idea that led to the expansion of the model’s supply enterprise. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Adamolekun returned P.F. Chang’s to profitability with a 31.7% improve in gross sales by 2021 and annual revenues of $1 billion. He was later tapped to guide Pink Lobster in August 2024.
3. His technique? Get the workforce fired up and laser-focusedAdamolekun understands that no turnaround occurs solo. Talking with CBS Information, he broke down his strategy to rebuilding belief and goal from inside:
“A very powerful factor I did was most likely on the very starting, which was getting the workforce galvanized round a mission and a technique and getting them targeted on turning the web page from what had been a really tough, you recognize, previous few months, clearly. So, you recognize, you may’t make a comeback like this with out the workforce believing in a future.”
He added that public confidence wanted a lift, too:
“Lots of people had been frightened. They had been frightened that the corporate was lifeless, proper? So we needed to present a path ahead. It concerned lots of funding from homeowners of the corporate, a transparent technique, investing within the friends investing within the workforce. After which when you’ve gotten individuals fired as much as make a change, it’s wonderful what may be finished.”
4. He’s bringing sensible enterprise — not simply buzzRed Lobster’s notorious “Infinite Shrimp” promotion could have gone viral method again when, however it additionally racked up critical losses. Adamolekun is targeted on long-term sustainability, not gimmicks. He’s already double downed on buyer expertise, improved operations, and made meals inexpensive once more — with out sacrificing taste or aptitude.
5. He’s a sign of what’s attainable for Black management in businessAdamolekun’s rise isn’t nearly seafood — it’s about shifting the narrative. As a younger Black govt in a high-profile CEO position, he’s proof that new voices are altering the sport. For younger professionals dreaming large, his success story is a case examine in what’s attainable when preparation meets goal.
As he put it: “It’s not faking it. It’s educating. It’s changing into the factor you’ll want to be… making ready. It’s essential acknowledge that who you are actually isn’t who you’re going to be in the end, and you’ll want to take steps in the direction of your objectives.”
Pink Lobster is likely to be recognized for its biscuits, however beneath Damola Adamolekun, the actual recipe is imaginative and prescient, management, and unapologetic Black brilliance.
