Denny’s in Talks to Buy Super Bowl Ad for Food Giveaway Again

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By Courtney Dentch

Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) — Denny’s Corp., the largest full- service U.S. family restaurant chain, is in negotiations with CBS Corp. to purchase advertising during the 2010 Super Bowl, Chief Executive Officer Nelson Marchioli said.

The commercial will probably focus on a free-food promotion to draw consumers to the chain’s 1,540 locations in a repeat of this year’s Grand Slam breakfast giveaway, Marchioli, 59, said in an interview at Bloomberg headquarters in New York. The exact offer hasn’t been determined, he said.

“I want to do it, but I want it to do at least as well as it did last time,” Marchioli said. “We have to make sure it’s the right offer.”

The company gave out about 2 million Grand Slam breakfast platters after running a single commercial in February during the 2009 Super Bowl, the National Football League’s championship game and one of the year’s most-viewed televised events.

The promotion also increased repeat visits from customers, Marchioli said. A similar giveaway around the National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament didn’t have as lasting an effect, he said.

Denny’s, based in Spartanburg, South Carolina, fell 7 cents to $2.23 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. It has gained 12 percent this year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Courtney Dentch in New York at cdentch1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 12, 2009 16:50 EST