BRANDS THAT MATTER

THIS YEAR, WE HONOR 121 BRANDS AND 10 CMOS OF THE YEARINCLUDING THESE 11 WINNERS WHO ARE GROWING THEIR BRANDS WHERE BUSINESS MEETS CULTURE.

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WINNING WITH VALUE Chili's CMO George Felix's strategy is helping the restaurant chain win back costconscious diners.

HOW GEORGE FELIX IS BRINGING CHILI'S "BABY BACK" TO ITS GLORY DAYS

IN AN ICONIC SECOND-SEASON EPisode of The Office, beleaguered secretary Pam, drunk off a few too many Chili's margaritas, receives an award (for "whitest shoes") and concludes her acceptance speech by declaring: "I feel God in this Chili's tonight." The moment has been quoted, GIF'd, and clipped countless times since the episode aired in 2005-but the show's setting of Scranton, Pennsylvania, didn't have a local Chili's until April 2025. Opening a restaurant there, CMO George Felix says, was an opportunity to pull off what he calls a "culture pop"-a moment that inserts Chili's into the cultural conversation in an authentic way.

Despite a modern exterior, the Scranton Chili's has a sign and decor straight out of 2005, plus a replica booth from the episode for photo ops. Chili's made TikToks with stars from The Office to promote the opening, which helped the location notch the best opening for a new Chili's restaurant in the past three years.

The Scranton launch was a microcosm of Felix's approach to rebuilding the Chili's brand since he joined the company (from Tinder) in 2022. Namely, respecting its feelgood heritage while understanding what customers want today.

As it marks 50 years slinging fajitas and margaritas, Chili's is sizzling. Same-store sales were up 24% year over year in Q4 2025-the chain's fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.