McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant

McCormick & Schmick's Management Group, a national restaurant group from Portland, Oregon, opened its 20th location in downtown Baltimore's Inner Harbor in 1997. Six months prior to the opening, Doug Schmick and Bill McCormick selected Profiles to develop and direct a multi-faceted communications program to position McCormick & Schmick's as a destination for residents and tourists in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. To accomplish this, Profiles initiated a series of programs, including:

Opening
Profiles developed an opening strategy at the core of which was a cocktail reception followed by a series of rehearsal lunches and dinners for business leaders, elected officials, tourism and travel professionals, and media representatives. To reach these targeted groups, Profiles researched and compiled a guest list of 2,500 people; designed, produced, and issued invitations for each event; tracked and managed responses; and coordinated on-site logistics for the events.

Results: The cocktail reception and rehearsal lunches and dinners drew more than 1,000 guests including Baltimore City Mayor Kurt Schmoke, City Council President Lawrence Bell, Greater Baltimore Alliance president Ioanna Morfessis, Maryland Secretary of Business and Economic Development James Brady, and U. S. Congressman Ben Cardin. In it's first week of operation, McCormick & Schmick's served more than 1,500 customers, representing a double-digit increase over initial projections.

McCormick & Schmick's Baltimore location has been named the number one restaurant in terms of sales throughout the McCormick & Schmick's Management Group's 50 plus restaurants, outperforming outlets in such locations as Seattle, Portland and Los Angeles.

Media Relations
Profiles manages a media outreach program targeted to print and broadcast editors and reporters that positions McCormick & Schmick's as a destination for tourists and local residents. In addition to consistent contact with the media through press releases, emails and phone calls, Profiles invites reporters and editors to the restaurant for a first-hand experience. In correlation with events, Profiles creates, organizes, produces, and hand-delivers packages to the media.

Results: The program has resulted in multiple media print placements in The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, The Daily Record, Baltimore magazine, The Jewish Times, and Style Magazine; radio coverage on WPOC-FM, WERQ-FM, WLIF-FM, WWIN-FM, WZBA-FM, WCBM-FM, WTMD-FM, WBAL-AM, and WQSR Radio; and television coverage through live on-air cooking demonstrations by McCormick & Schmick's chefs on WJZ-TV, WBAL-TV, WBFF-TV and WMAR-TV.

The restaurant has also been named the number one chain restaurant by Consumer Reports in 2004. Additionally, year after year McCormick & Schmick's excellence garners numerous awards from Baltimore magazine including one of the Top 50 Restaurants in Baltimore and the reader's choice awards for Best Seafood Restaurant and Best Crab Cake.

Promotions
To introduce business representatives who have the capacity to influence and direct traffic to McCormick & Schmick's, Profiles organized and implemented a strategic campaign that included a special "drive-by" for taxi drivers who received special gifts as well as private receptions and individual introductions for tourism and travel representatives, meeting planners, and other important referral sources.

To create a favorable public image, Profiles plans, develops, and coordinates events to actively involve the restaurant in the community. Some annual events include McCormick & Schmick's Patio Party and The Pier V Oyster Festival to benefit the National Historic Seaport's Seven Foot Knoll Light House. Profiles also assists McCormick & Schmick's with community fundraisers such as the Baltimore Zoo's Zoomerang, the National Aquarium's Splash!, the Living Classroom's Maritime Magic, and the March of Dime's Celebrity Chef.

Results: McCormick & Schmick's community outreach has not only garnered media from WJZ-TV, WBAL-TV, WMAR-TV, WBFF-TV, WBAL-AM, WPOC-FM, WWIN-FM, WQSR-FM, WTMD-FM, WZBA-FM, The Baltimore Sun, Patuxent Papers, The City Paper, and The Jewish Times, but has positioned the restaurant as the destination of choice for Baltimore residents and tourist alike.

McCormick & Schmick's was a client of Profiles from 1997 to 2004