Southern Proper Hospitality

What Southern Proper Hospitality does

Southern Proper Hospitality Group, Inc. is a privately held, multi-concept restaurant operator headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 2013, the company operates between 14 and 21 restaurant locations across the Southeast United States spanning nine distinct dining concepts: Tin Lizzy's (neighborhood taco'rias), Southern Gentleman (southern gastropub), Gypsy Kitchen ATL and DC (Pan-Mediterranean), Milton's (southern cuisine), Ocean & Acre and The Big Ketch (coastal seafood). The company generates revenue primarily through on-premise food and beverage sales, private events and catering (corporate events, weddings, full restaurant buyouts), gift card sales through the MyGuestAccount third-party platform, and a cross-brand point-based mobile loyalty program called Proper Rewards built on the Thanx platform.

The business is a direct-to-consumer restaurant group with no proprietary technology platforms. Its technology stack consists of third-party integrations: Thanx for loyalty and mobile app, MyGuestAccount for gift cards, Paylocity for recruiting and HR, and Google Analytics for web measurement. There are no disclosed AI/ML capabilities, no patents or trademarks filed, no public APIs, and no proprietary data assets. The go-to-market motion is entirely physical-restaurant-driven, supported by organic social presence (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn), email and SMS marketing, and an event inquiry funnel on the company website.

Southern Proper Hospitality serves general diners and food enthusiasts as its primary segment, with secondary use-case segments of corporate event clients and celebration/social event hosts (weddings, rehearsal dinners, milestone events). Pricing for menu items, events, and catering is not publicly disclosed. The company is owned and controlled by its founding partners, led by CEO Chris Hadermann and Managing Partner John "JP" Piemonte, with no disclosed institutional investors, private equity backing, or parent company affiliation. The company has received multiple industry awards, including FSR Magazine's 10 Most Powerful Restaurant Groups, Inc. 5000 #615, Seminole 100 #5, NRAEF Restaurant Neighbor Award, and the Nation's Restaurant News Power List (2015).

Name

Southern Proper Hospitality

Legal name

Southern Proper Hospitality Group, Inc.

Website

https://sphospitality.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Southern Proper Hospitality is a privately held, Atlanta-based multi-concept restaurant group operating 14-21 locations across the Southeast under nine distinct dining brands, serving general diners, corporate event clients, and celebration hosts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Multi-Concept Restaurant Group

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251), Food Services and Drinking Places (722), Special Food Services (7223), Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Special Occasion & Destination Restaurants (THAFACAK), Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants (THAFACAD), Regional/Ethnic Specialty Fast Casual (e.g., Indian, Caribbean, African, Eastern European) (THAFABAM), Exclusive Dining Access & Chef’s Table Reservations (HSACAMAJ), Private Culinary Experiences (Chef’s Table, Home Dining, Market-to-Meal) (THAJALAH)

Keywords

• Multi-concept restaurant group
• Southern gastropub dining
• Pan-Mediterranean restaurants
• Private event catering
• Hospitality group operations

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Dining: Core revenue from food and beverage sales across 14-21 restaurant locations featuring diverse concepts including southern gastropubs, Pan-Mediterranean cuisine, coastal seafood, and neighborhood taquerias. Revenue generated through walk-in customers, reservations, and dine-in service.
2. Private Events & Catering: Revenue from hosting private events, corporate gatherings, and weddings ranging from intimate occasions to full restaurant buyouts. The company promotes event planning services through dedicated inquiry forms on their website.
3. Gift Cards: Sale of gift cards through a third-party platform (myguestaccount.com), providing upfront cash flow and driving future customer visits.
4. Loyalty Program Participation: Proper Rewards loyalty program where customers earn points for dollars spent, redeemable for rewards. Points accumulate through dine-in and online ordering, driving customer retention and frequency.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Southern Proper Hospitality operates a multi-concept restaurant group of 14–21 locations across the Southeast U.S. under 9 distinct brands, including an elegant southern gastropub (Southern Gentleman), Pan-Mediterranean venues (Gypsy Kitchen ATL/DC), coastal seafood concepts (Ocean & Acre, The Big Ketch), a neighborhood cantina (Tin Lizzy's), and Southern cuisine (Milton's). It generates revenue from dine-in food and beverage service, private event hosting and buyouts, gift card sales, and a loyalty rewards program.

Product overview

Southern Proper Hospitality is a multi-concept restaurant group operating 14 to 21 restaurant locations across the Southeast, organized as a collection of distinct dining concepts rather than a single unified platform. The portfolio includes: Southern Gentleman (elegant southern gastropub), Gypsy Kitchen ATL and DC (Pan-Mediterranean restaurants), Milton's (southern cuisine), Ocean & Acre and The Big Ketch (coastal seafood), and Tin Lizzy's (neighborhood taco'rias). Supporting products include the Proper Rewards mobile loyalty program (powered by Thanx) for point earning and redemption, gift cards via a third-party platform, and event planning services for private dining and buyouts. The restaurant concepts are linked through shared branding, a unified rewards program, and centralized corporate operations, but function as independent dining venues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Tin Lizzy's: Cantina-style dining concept
• Southern Gentleman
• Gypsy Kitchen ATL
• Gypsy Kitchen DC
• Milton's
• Ocean & Acre
• The Big Ketch
• Proper Rewards

Products and services

• Tin Lizzy's

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ThanxcoreTechnology or IntegrationThanx provides the technology platform for Southern Proper Hospitality's Proper Rewards loyalty program. The partnership enables mobile app functionality including points accumulation, reward redemption, restaurant discovery, and reservation booking. Available on both iOS (App Store) and Android (Google Play) platforms.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Punch Bowl Social: Eatertainment venue concept combining dining, drinks, and activities with strong private events orientation. Comparable as an experience-led dining concept with significant event-hosting revenue, though entertainment-anchored rather than cuisine-differentiated.

Broad incumbents

• Brinker International: Operates Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy. Comparable as a multi-concept casual dining operator, though at national scale and with a focused two-brand portfolio.
• Darden Restaurants: Owns and operates a large portfolio of full-service restaurant brands (Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Capital Grille, etc.). Comparable as a multi-concept full-service operator, though at vastly greater scale and with national geographic reach.
• Bloomin' Brands: Public multi-concept restaurant company operating Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming's. Comparable as a multi-concept full-service operator, though broader and publicly traded.

Direct peers

• The ONE Group Hospitality: Operates upscale, experience-driven restaurant brands (STK, Benihana) with strong private events and nightlife components. Comparable business model of multi-concept, experience-led full-service dining with significant private events revenue mix.
• Tavistock Restaurant Collection: Operates a portfolio of differentiated upscale-casual restaurant concepts. Comparable as a multi-concept restaurant group running distinct brands with elevated dining positioning and event capabilities.
• 5th Street Group: Atlanta-based hospitality group operating multiple restaurant and entertainment concepts. Comparable as a Southeastern multi-concept operator with overlapping geographic footprint and similar experience-driven brand positioning.
• Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises: Chicago-based multi-concept restaurant group operating dozens of distinct dining brands across varied cuisines and price points. Closely mirrors SPH's strategy of running differentiated concepts under one corporate umbrella with a strong events/catering component.
• Castellucci Hospitality Group: Atlanta-based multi-concept restaurant group (Sugo, the Iberian Pig, Marcel, etc.). Directly comparable as a Southeastern multi-concept operator running differentiated dining concepts under unified corporate branding.
• Concentrics Restaurants: Atlanta-based restaurant group operating multiple concepts including Two Urban Licks, Tap, and Biltmore Bar + Grill. Comparable as a Southeastern multi-concept operator with strong event/catering offerings.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/southernproperhospitality
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/southern-proper-hospitality
• Instagraminstagram.com/southernproperhospitality

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Southern Proper Hospitality