To keep up to date with the latest personnel changes across the seafood industry, SeafoodSource is compiling a regular round-up of hiring announcements and other personnel-related shifts worldwide. If you have an announcement, please send it to [email protected].
– Landry’s CEO and owner Tilman Fertitta has announced that he will retire from his role in the company if he is confirmed as the U.S. ambassador to Italy, in order to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
President Donald Trump announced that he was naming Fertitta as Italian ambassador on 21 December 2024, saying on Truth Social:
“Tilman is an accomplished businessman, who has founded and built one of our Country’s premier entertainment and real estate companies, employing approximately 50,000 Americans," Trump wrote. "Tilman has a long history of giving back to the community through numerous philanthropic initiatives, which include children’s charities, Law Enforcement, and the medical community. Additionally, Tilman is the longest serving Chairman of the Board of Regents for the University of Houston. He also owns the Houston Rockets Basketball Team.”
Houston Public Media published a letter from Fertitta to the State Department, in which he said that he would resign but retain ownership of Landry’s if his ambassadorial appointment was approved.
According to Restaurant Business, Fertitta is reportedly worth USD 10.8 billion (EUR 10 billion), and has been a major supporter of Trump, donating USD 420,000 (EUR 389,000) to pro-Trump organizations before the 2024 election.
Though the Landry’s group now includes over 600 locations in the U.S., according to the company’s website it began with Landry’s Seafood Restaurant, which opened in Katy, Texas in 1980. Fertitta was a partner in that first location, and ultimately bought the company as it expanded over the next thirty years. Today, the Landry’s group includes numerous seafood restaurants, including Aquarium, Babin’s Seafood House, Fisherman’s Wharf Grill, and national chains such as Bubba Gump Shrimp Company and Dos Caminos, as well as the Golden Nugget Casino.
The U.S. Senate has not yet scheduled a confirmation hearing for Fertitta.
– Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.-headquartered Ocean Outcomes (O2) has appointed Joe Rosenberg and Lucy Perkins to its Board of Directors.
Rosenberg said in an Ocean Outcomes release that he was honored by the appointment, adding that "the health of our oceans is deeply interconnected with the well-being of the people who rely on them,” and that he hoped to support the organization’s “mission to ensure equity, sustainability, and resilience for all fisheries stakeholders."
“What a privilege to work with O2 now as its impact takes off," Perkins said. "The challenges are big, but O2 is well-positioned to make a real difference for the oceans and for all of us who depend on the oceans.”
Rosenberg is the former president of North American seafood wholesaler CenSea, and formerly worked in the finance industry, with Nasdaq, Bridgewater Associates, Barclays, and Lehman Brothers.
He is expected to bring experience in governance to the organization, having previously served on the National Seafood Council Task Force, the National Leadership Council for the Seafood Nutrition Partnership, the Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative’s Partners Council and the Blockchain Working Committee at the National Fisheries Institute (NFI).
Perkins is the co-founder of Systems Entrepreneurs Advisors, a global social entrepreneurship group, where she is a strategic and financial advisor to citizen and business sector organizations. She has also served in the Leadership Group at Ashoka, and worked in project and equity finance in Asia, first with the World Bank and then with the Emerging Markets Partnership, a USD 7 billion infrastructure-focused investment firm.
– Former Ruth’s Chris CEO Craig Miller has been named CEO of Italian fast casual eateries Brio Italian Grill and Bravo Italian Kitchen, owned by Earl Enterprises.
Earl owner Robert Earl said, in a statement, that Miller’s “expertise and strategic vision are poised to propel our beloved brands to new heights. Craig’s extensive background across various dining concepts and his proven track record of financial and operational success will undoubtedly be an asset at Bravo and Brio restaurants.”
