NASDAQ Opening Bell Ceremony | Famous Dave's

Click here to view Opening Bell Ringing Ceremony.

A Personal Thank You From Famous Dave...

Famous Dave's Rings the NASDAQ Opening Bell on June 10, 2009 - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.click to enlargeWOW! Did I have an experience today. It gave me goose bumps and almost brought me to tears. In honor of celebrating 15 years of operations and being listing on NASDAQ since 1996, I got to ring the opening NASDAQ bell with our CEO Christopher O’Donnell, Diana Purcell our CFO, Mark Lyso a Franchise Business Consultant, franchise partners David Marks and Nelson Lee, and our new franchise partners – Jacob and Sammy Benmoha who just opened the most amazing Famous Dave’s right in Times Square! Christopher, our passionate CEO, gave a rousing opening speech from the heart. Then we whooped it up, hollered, and cheered. Bob McCooey, Senior Vice President of NASDAQ OMX, said if we were really loud that our stock would go up. So we gave it all we had. And guess what? Our stock did go up!!! From $6.25 open to $6.45 at close. And this is up from $2.00 back in March. I’d say that’s pretty good for this economy. And out on Times Square a video about Famous Dave’s was playing on NASDAQ’s huge ten story TV screen for all of the world to see. It was exciting to see people stop and look at our juicy ribs being slathered with our award-winning Rich & Sassy® BBQ Sauce with flames dancing all around them... got everyone hungry.

 

“Wilbur,” “Famous” Dave Anderson, and President & CEO Christopher O’Donnell - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.click to enlargeIt all made me think back to the day I opened the first Famous Dave’s restaurant in Hayward, Wisconsin, peeking from the kitchen to watch our first customer take the first bite of our soon-to-be world famous slow-smoked ribs. I would have never guessed that first bite would lead to Famous Dave’s being recognized as The Best Ribs in America and being showcased ten stories tall in Times Square! It just goes to show how important it is to never give up on your dreams and more importantly to never give up when things seem hopeless. I am so honored to be part of a winning team led by Christopher O’Donnell and even more excited for our future as we keep focused on our goal to be America’s Official Barbeque Joint! America is truly The Land of Opportunity where a young Native American kid like myself can have a dream, work hard, and realize their dream come true. We live in a great country.

 

“Famous” Dave Anderson standing in front of the huge NASDAQ display - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.click to enlargeNone of this would be possible without the dedicated team members in our restaurants who make the best award-winning barbeque and deliver outstanding service to our guests every day. I am thankful for our franchise partners who share our passion to be the Absolute Best in BBQ and to one day to see Famous Dave’s throughout the world! I am also grateful to our stakeholders who have steadfastly supported us. And finally, I must share my love for our raving loyal fans – our passionate devoted customers – who keep coming back year after year after year! Thank all of you for making this dream come true. I am sincerely humbled and grateful.

 

Rib-O-Liciously Yours,
Famous Dave
"Famous Dave"

Famous Dave's Rings the NASDAQ Opening Bell on June 10, 2009 - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.“Wilbur,” “Famous” Dave Anderson, and President & CEO Christopher O’Donnell - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.“Famous” Dave Anderson standing in front of the huge NASDAQ display - image © 2009, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Reprinted with permission.