The Hire
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (NASDAQ: RRGB) is appointing Scott Hudler as chief marketing officer, effective September 8, 2026. Hudler replaces interim CMO Russ Klein, who stepped into the role in April 2025 and will stay on in a consultative capacity through year-end.
Hudler brings more than 25 years of brand-building experience across restaurants and retail. Most recently, he served as SVP and CMO of Whataburger, where he directed brand strategy, digital, and customer engagement. His résumé also includes senior marketing roles at Torchy's Tacos, Dunkin' Brands, Popeyes, DICK'S Sporting Goods, and Mars — a portfolio that spans fast casual, QSR, and big-box retail.
Scope and Strategic Signal
In the CMO seat, Hudler will own a wide mandate: brand strategy, advertising, digital marketing, loyalty, culinary innovation, guest insights, and marketing communications. That breadth is notable. Casual-dining chains operating near 500 locations increasingly need their marketing lead to function as a cross-functional growth officer — bridging the loyalty program with menu development and tying digital spend to measurable frequency gains.
Red Robin's "First Choice Strategy," referenced by CEO Dave Pace in the announcement, has been the chain's organizing framework for connecting with guests and improving marketing efficiency under Klein's interim tenure. Hudler's appointment suggests the brand wants to press forward on that strategy with a full-time leader who has a track record of digital and loyalty execution at scale. Operators watching casual-dining recovery dynamics should note that loyalty program performance and repeat-visit frequency remain two of the sector's most closely watched recovery metrics heading into late 2026.
What Operators Should Watch
For agencies, vendors, and marketing tech suppliers in the hospitality space, a CMO transition at a nearly 500-unit casual-dining chain is a procurement signal. New CMOs typically audit existing agency relationships, loyalty platforms, and digital infrastructure within their first 90 days. Brands in the brand-launch and agency space that work across QSR and casual dining will recognize this as a window to re-engage.
On the culinary side, Hudler's scope includes innovation and development — meaning menu strategy sits inside marketing rather than operating as a siloed function. That integration reflects a broader trend in operator intelligence reporting: full-service chains are increasingly treating limited-time offers, menu architecture, and digital promotions as a single coordinated lever rather than separate departmental efforts.
For Red Robin specifically, the chain's Bottomless perks positioning and Red Robin Royalty loyalty program are central to its value narrative in a market where guests remain price-sensitive. Whoever Hudler retains or recruits to run digital and loyalty execution will likely shape whether that program deepens guest frequency or stalls. Vendors across CRM, personalization, and programmatic advertising should expect RFP activity as the new CMO benchmarks the existing stack.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
