Cracker Barrel Old Country Store to Form Holding Company - CBRL Group, Inc.

LEBANON, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 22, 1998--

Ronald N. Magruder Elevated to President of CBRL Group, Inc.

and Richard K. Arras to Join Cracker Barrel Old Country

Store as President and Chief Operating Officer 

Dan W. Evins, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (Nasdaq/NM: CBRL), today announced the elevation of Ronald N. Magruder to President and Chief Operating Officer of CBRL Group, Inc., a Tennessee corporation formed to become the holding company for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and all related Cracker Barrel companies. The transformation to a holding company structure is expected to be completed following the Cracker Barrel annual meeting November 24, 1998. Dan Evins remains Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., and he also serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of CBRL Group, Inc.

Dan W. Evins also announced that on October 12, 1998, Richard K. Arras will join Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. as President and Chief Operating Officer. Arras was most recently President and Chief Operating Officer of Perkins Family Restaurants. Perkins currently owns 138 and franchises 350 full-service family-style restaurants in 35 states and five Canadian provinces. Arras has overseen a period of substantial growth at Perkins, which included a multi-million dollar remodeling effort to upgrade the Perkins system and to increase sales and broaden its customer base.

Arras joined Perkins Family Restaurants in 1979 and worked through all levels of management from a management candidate to the position of President and Chief Operating Officer. He assumed those duties in 1988. In his position as President and Chief Operating Officer of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., Arras will be responsible for all daily operations and administration of the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store(R) restaurants and gift shops. He will report to Ronald N. Magruder, the President of CBRL Group, Inc., and he will be accountable for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc's. overall financial performance and continued growth.

Evins stated, "On behalf of the Board of Directors, management and employees of Cracker Barrel, I extend a warm country welcome to Rick. He is a respected and talented restaurant operator who brings an exceptional level of talent and relevant experience to Cracker Barrel. His achievements are evidence of his expertise and leadership. His appointment as President and Chief Operating Officer of Cracker Barrel signifies the confidence that the company and its Board of Directors have in Rick's ability to continue the company's consistent growth well into the future. The addition of Rick also allows the company take advantage of Ron Magruder's vision and leadership as head of a holding company which already includes an additional concept: Carmine's Gourmet Market, and which can now more easily focus on growing by acquisition or by developing new concepts, without any loss of leadership at the operating level."

Arras said, "I am extremely excited by the opportunity to work with Dan Evins and Ron Magruder and the entire Cracker Barrel team. The Cracker Barrel Old Country Store(R) has a wonderful history, and I look forward to the challenge and excitement of building on such a strong foundation." Magruder noted, "This is part of the evolution of Cracker Barrel, and it allows us, in a very powerful way, to focus directly on growth opportunities while maintaining the same attention to operations that has made Cracker Barrel great in the past."

Headquartered in Lebanon, Tennessee, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. operates 363 restaurants and gift shops in 35 states: Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Virginia, Missouri, South Carolina, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Colorado, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico, Utah, Maryland, Connecticut, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, and New Jersey.