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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 


 

FORM 10-Q

 

x    QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF

THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

FOR THE QUARTERLY PERIOD ENDED MARCH 30, 2003

OR

 

¨    TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF

THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the transition period from             to             

 

Commission file number 000-31149

 

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

California

 

95-4040623

(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

 

(IRS Employer Identification Number)

 

6053 West Century Boulevard, 11th Floor

Los Angeles, California 90045-6442

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

 

(310) 342-5000

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 


 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15 (d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

YES  x     NO  ¨

There were 18,835,610 shares of outstanding Common Stock of the Registrant as of April 30, 2003.

 



Table of Contents

 

LOGO

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

PART I. Financial Information

    

Page No.


Item 1. Financial Statements (unaudited):

      

Consolidated Balance Sheets at
March 30, 2003 and December 29, 2002

    

3

Consolidated Statements of Income for the three months
ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002

    

4

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the three months
ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002

    

5

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

    

6

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations

    

9

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

    

20

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

    

20

PART II. Other Information

    

21

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

    

21

Item 6. Exhibits and Reports on Form 8-K

    

21

Signatures

    

22

Certifications

    

23

Index to Exhibits

    

25

 

Page    2


Table of Contents

 

PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

 

ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Balance Sheets

(in thousands, except for share data)

 

    

March 30,


    

December 29,


 
    

2003


    

2002


 
    

(unaudited)

        

Assets

                 

Current assets:

                 

Cash and cash equivalents

  

$

15,925

 

  

$

31,261

 

Investments in marketable securities

  

 

8,554

 

  

 

—  

 

Trade accounts receivable

  

 

1,422

 

  

 

2,933

 

Inventories

  

 

2,385

 

  

 

2,466

 

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

  

 

2,907

 

  

 

1,216

 

    


  


Total current assets

  

 

31,193

 

  

 

37,876

 

Property and equipment, net

  

 

133,357

 

  

 

126,356

 

Investment in unconsolidated joint venture

  

 

2,000

 

  

 

—  

 

Deferred taxes

  

 

2,404

 

  

 

2,404

 

Other assets

  

 

1,860

 

  

 

1,809

 

    


  


Total assets

  

$

170,814

 

  

$

168,445

 

    


  


Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity

                 

Current liabilities:

                 

Accounts payable

  

$

3,102

 

  

$

3,858

 

Accrued compensation and benefits

  

 

7,580

 

  

 

10,955

 

Accrued rent

  

 

7,263

 

  

 

6,952

 

Other accrued liabilities

  

 

8,368

 

  

 

8,105

 

Accrued income tax

  

 

3,328

 

  

 

1,444

 

    


  


Total current liabilities

  

 

29,641

 

  

 

31,314

 

    


  


Other liabilities

  

 

1,905

 

  

 

3,010

 

                   

Commitments and contingencies

                 

Shareholders’ equity:

                 

Common Stock—  $0.01 par value, 80,000,000 shares authorized,
18,834,289 and 18,743,439 shares issued and outstanding
at March 30, 2003 and December 29, 2002 respectively

  

 

188

 

  

 

187

 

Additional paid-in capital

  

 

212,459

 

  

 

211,306

 

Accumulated deficit

  

 

(73,379

)

  

 

(77,372

)

    


  


Total shareholders’ equity

  

 

139,268

 

  

 

134,121

 

    


  


Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity

  

$

170,814

 

  

$

168,445

 

    


  


 

See accompanying notes

 

Page    3


Table of Contents

 

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Statements of Income (unaudited)

(in thousands, except per share data)

 

    

Three Months Ended


    

March 30, 2003


  

March 31, 2002


Revenues:

             

Restaurant sales

  

$

81,934

  

$

69,541

Franchise and other revenues

  

 

923

  

 

675

    

  

Total revenues

  

 

82,857

  

 

70,216

Restaurant costs and expenses:

             

Cost of sales

  

 

19,856

  

 

17,091

Labor

  

 

30,510

  

 

25,120

Direct operating and occupancy

  

 

16,651

  

 

14,016

    

  

Total restaurant operating costs

  

 

67,017

  

 

56,227

General and administrative

  

 

4,983

  

 

4,326

Depreciation and amortization

  

 

4,195

  

 

3,468

Pre-opening

  

 

720

  

 

529

    

  

Operating income

  

 

5,942

  

 

5,666

Interest income

  

 

112

  

 

82

    

  

Income before income tax provision

  

 

6,054

  

 

5,748

Income tax provision

  

 

2,061

  

 

2,012

    

  

Net income

  

$

3,993

  

$

3,736

    

  

Net income per common share:

             

Basic

  

$

0.21

  

$

0.20

    

  

Diluted

  

$

0.21

  

$

0.20

    

  

Shares used in calculating net income per common share:

             

Basic

  

 

18,802

  

 

18,497

    

  

Diluted

  

 

19,082

  

 

18,775

    

  

 

See accompanying notes

 

Page    4


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California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (unaudited)

(in thousands)

 

    

Three Months Ended


 
    

March 30, 2003


    

March 31, 2002


 

Operating activities:

                 

Net income

  

$

3,993

 

  

$

3,736

 

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:

                 

Depreciation and amortization

  

 

4,195

 

  

 

3,468

 

Changes in operating assets and liabilities:

                 

Trade accounts receivable

  

 

1,511

 

  

 

1,355

 

Inventories

  

 

81

 

  

 

(71

)

Prepaid expenses and other assets

  

 

(1,742

)

  

 

(1,780

)

Accounts payable

  

 

(756

)

  

 

1,601

 

Accrued liabilities

  

 

(1,906

)

  

 

(837

)

Other liabilities

  

 

(116

)

  

 

(585

)

    


  


Net cash provided by operating activities

  

 

5,260

 

  

 

6,887

 

Investing activities:

                 

Capital expenditures

  

 

(11,196

)

  

 

(7,475

)

Investments in marketable securities

  

 

(8,554

)

  

 

—  

 

Investment in unconsolidated joint venture

  

 

(2,000

)

  

 

—  

 

    


  


Net cash used in investing activities

  

 

(21,750

)

  

 

(7,475

)

Financing activities:

                 

Net proceeds from issuance of common stock

  

 

1,154

 

  

 

1,127

 

    


  


Net cash provided by financing activities

  

 

1,154

 

  

 

1,127

 

    


  


                   

Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents

  

 

(15,336

)

  

 

539

 

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period

  

 

31,261

 

  

 

19,788

 

    


  


Cash and cash equivalents at end of period

  

$

15,925

 

  

$

20,327

 

    


  


Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:

                 

Cash paid during the period for:

                 

Income taxes

  

$

126

 

  

$

649

 

    


  


 

See accompanying notes

 

Page    5


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California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

March 30, 2003

(unaudited)

 

1. Basis of Presentation

 

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (referred to herein as the “Company”) owns, operates, licenses or franchises 153 restaurants under the names California Pizza Kitchen and California Pizza Kitchen ASAP.

 

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared by the Company in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited interim financial statements include all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) which are necessary for a fair statement of the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented. However, these results are not necessarily indicative of results for any other interim periods or for the full fiscal year. The consolidated balance sheet data presented herein for December 29, 2002 was derived from the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year then ended, but does not include all disclosures required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires the Company to make certain estimates and assumptions for the reporting periods covered by the financial statements. These estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. Actual amounts could differ from these estimates.

 

Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States have been omitted pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company believes the disclosures included in the accompanying interim consolidated financial statements and footnotes are adequate to make the information not misleading, but should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

2. New Accounting Standards

 

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) recently issued several Statements of Financial Accounting Standards (“SFAS”). The statements relevant to our line of business and the impact on us are as follows:

 

The Company follows SFAS No. 146, “Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities.” SFAS No. 146 supersedes Emerging Issues Task Force (“EITF”) No. 94-3, “Liability Recognition for Certain Employee Termination Benefits and Other Costs to Exit an Activity (Including Certain Costs Incurred in a Restructuring).” SFAS No. 146 requires a liability for costs associated with an exit or disposal activity to be recognized when the liability is incurred. SFAS No. 146 was effective for exit or disposal activities that are initiated after December 31,

 

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2002. The adoption of this statement did not have an impact on the consolidated results of operations or financial position for the first three months of 2003 or 2002.

 

In August 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets,” which addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment or disposal of long-lived assets and supersedes SFAS No. 121, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets and for Long-Lived Assets to be Disposed Of” and the accounting and reporting provisions of Accounting Principles Board (APB) Opinion No. 30, “Reporting the Results of Operations” for a disposal of a segment of a business. We adopted SFAS No. 144 as of December 31, 2001. The adoption of this statement did not have an impact on the consolidated results of operations or financial position for the first three months of 2003 or 2002.

 

In December 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 148, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation—Transition and Disclosure.” SFAS No. 148 amends SFAS No. 123, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation,” to provide alternative methods of transition to SFAS No. 123’s fair value method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation. SFAS No. 148 also amends the disclosure provisions of SFAS No. 123 and APB Opinion No. 28, “Interim Financial Reporting,” to require disclosure in the summary of significant accounting policies of the effects of an entity’s accounting policy with respect to stock-based employee compensation on reported net income and earnings per share in annual and interim financial statements.

 

We have adopted the “disclosure only” provisions of SFAS No. 123 and will continue to use the intrinsic value-based method of accounting prescribed by APB No. 25, “Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees.” Accordingly, no compensation expense as been recognized for our stock option plans. Had compensation expense for our stock option plans been determined based on the fair value at the grant date for awards for the period ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002 consistent with the provisions of SFAS No. 123, our after-tax net income and after-tax net income per share would have been reduced to the pro-forma amounts indicated below (in thousands, except net income per share):

 

Page    7


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Three Months Ended


    

March 30, 2003


  

March 31, 2002


Net income as reported

  

$

3,993

  

$

3,736

Deduct:

             

Total stock-based employee compensation expense determined under fair value methods for all awards, net of related tax effects

  

 

655

  

 

484

    

  

Pro forma net income

  

$

3,338

  

$

3,252

    

  

Net income per share:

             

Basic, as reported

  

$

0.21

  

$

0.20

Basic, pro forma

  

$

0.18

  

$

0.18

Diluted, as reported

  

$

0.21

  

$

0.20

Diluted, pro forma

  

$

0.17

  

$

0.17

Weighted average shares used in computation:

             

Basic

  

 

18,802

  

 

18,497

Diluted

  

 

19,082

  

 

18,775

 

The fair value of these options was estimated at the date of grant using a Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions for the three months ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002, respectively.

 

    

Three Months Ended


 
    

March 30, 2003


    

March 31, 2002


 

Risk free interest rate

  

2.53

%

  

2.53

%

Expected lives (in years)

  

5.00

 

  

5.00

 

Dividend yield

  

—  

%

  

—  

%

Expected volatility

  

0.42

%

  

0.42

%

 

The impact of applying SFAS No. 123, as amended by SFAS No. 148, in this pro forma disclosure is not necessarily indicative of the effect on income in the future. SFAS No. 123, as amended by SFAS No. 148, does not apply to awards granted prior to 1995. The Company anticipates making additional stock-based compensation awards in the future.

 

3. Sales of Common Stock

 

On January 14, 2003, employees purchased 29,576 shares of common stock from the Company under the Company’s employee stock purchase plan. The net proceeds to the Company were $578,000. Additionally,

employees exercised options to purchase 61,274 shares of common stock during the first three months ended March 30, 2003, which resulted in net proceeds to the Company of $576,000.

 

On January 15, 2002, employees purchased 67,537 shares of common stock from the Company

 

Page    8


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under the Company’s employee stock purchase plan. The net proceeds to the Company were $889,000. Additionally, employees exercised options to purchase 28,503 shares of common stock during the first three months ended March 31, 2002, which resulted in net proceeds to the Company of $238,000.

 

4. Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities

 

The Company has a $20.0 million revolving line of credit with Bank of America, N.A., of which zero is outstanding as of March 30, 2003. The credit line bears interest at either the bank base rate minus 0.75% or LIBOR plus 1.0% and expires on June 30, 2004. Availability under the credit facility is reduced by outstanding letters of credit, which totaled $2.8 million as of March 30, 2003. In addition, the credit facility includes financial and non-financial covenants which the Company was in compliance as of March 30, 2003.

 

5. Net Income Per Share

 

Reconciliation of the components included in the computation of basic and diluted net income per share in accordance with SFAS No. 128, “Earnings Per Share” for the three months ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002 is as follows (in thousands):

 

    

Three Months Ended


    

March 30, 2003


  

March 31, 2002


Numerator for basic and diluted net income per common share

  

$

3,993

  

$

3,736

    

  

Denominator:

             

Denominator for basic net income per common share—weighted average shares

  

 

18,802

  

 

18,497

Employee stock options

  

 

280

  

 

278

    

  

Denominator for diluted net income per common share—weighted average shares

  

 

19,082

  

 

18,775

 

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

 

Overview

 

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (referred to herein as “we” and “our”) is a leading casual dining restaurant chain in the premium pizza segment. As of May 2, 2003, we own and operate 122 restaurants under the name “California Pizza Kitchen” or “California Pizza Kitchen ASAP” in 25 states and the District of Columbia. We also franchise our concept and currently have 32 additional restaurants, which operate under franchise or license agreements. We opened our first restaurant in 1985 in Beverly Hills, California and during our 18 years of operating history, we have developed a recognized consumer brand and demonstrated the appeal of our concept in a wide variety of geographic areas. Our restaurants, which feature an exhibition-style kitchen centered around an open-flame oven, provide a distinctive, casual dining experience, which is family friendly and has a broad consumer appeal.

 

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We manage our operations by restaurant and have aggregated our operations to one reportable segment.

 

As of May 2, 2003 we have opened five full service restaurants in fiscal 2003, four of which were opened in the first quarter and one to date in the second quarter. We plan to open 17 additional full service restaurants in 2003 and have begun construction, signed lease agreements or have letters of intent for all of these additional restaurants.

 

Our revenues are comprised of restaurant sales, franchise royalties and other income. Our restaurant sales are comprised almost entirely of food and beverage sales.

 

Cost of sales is comprised of food, beverage and paper supply expenses. The components of cost of sales are variable and increase with sales volume. Labor costs include direct hourly and management wages, bonuses, taxes and benefits for restaurant employees. Direct operating and occupancy costs include restaurant supplies, marketing costs, fixed rent, percentage rent, common area maintenance charges, utilities, real estate taxes, repairs and maintenance and other related costs.

 

General and administrative costs include all corporate and administrative functions that support existing operations and provide infrastructure to facilitate our future growth. Components of this category include management, supervisory and staff salaries and related employee benefits, travel, information systems, training, corporate rent and professional and consulting fees. Depreciation and amortization principally include depreciation on capital expenditures for restaurants. Pre-opening costs, which are expensed as incurred, consist of the costs of hiring and training the initial work force, travel costs, the cost of food used in training, marketing costs, the cost of the initial stocking of operating supplies and other direct costs related to the opening of a new restaurant.

 

Our fiscal year consists of 52 or 53 weeks and ends on the Sunday closest to December 31 in each year. The three months ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002 consist of thirteen weeks. In calculating company-owned comparable restaurant sales, we include a restaurant in the comparable base once it has been open for 12 months.

 

Critical Accounting Policies

 

Critical accounting policies are those that we believe are most important to portraying our financial condition and results of operations and also require the greatest amount of subjective or complex judgments by management. Judgments or uncertainties regarding the application of these policies may result in materially different amounts being reported under different conditions or using different assumptions. We consider the following policies to be the most critical in understanding the judgments that are involved in preparing our consolidated financial statements.

 

Principles of Consolidation

 

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of California Pizza

 

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Kitchen, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiaries. The Company is a majority general partner in a limited partnership which was formed to operate a restaurant in Chicago. As such, the Company consolidates the financial statements of the limited partnership with its own financial statements. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated.

 

Cash and Cash Equivalents

 

The Company’s cash and cash equivalent balances are not pledged or restricted. The Company’s policy is to invest cash in excess of operating requirements in income-producing investments. Income-producing investments with maturities of three months or less at the time of investment are reflected as cash equivalents. Cash equivalents at March 30, 2003 consist primarily of Money Market Funds, Commercial Paper, Auction Rate Securities and preferred stock investments in Dividends Received Eligible Auction Market Stock (DREAMS) offered under private placements by a subsidiary of Bank of America.

 

Investments

 

The Company accounts for investments in marketable securities in accordance with Statements of Financial Accounting Standard No. 115, “Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities.” The Company’s investments are classified as marketable securities which are “held-to-maturity” and have been recorded at amortized cost. At March 30, 2003 the Company had $8.6 million of held-to-maturity investments that consisted of Treasury Bills and Federal Agency Securities. Under current investment guidelines maturities are restricted to two years or less.

 

On March 6, 2003 the Company invested $2.0 million for 25.0% equity participation in an upscale restaurant concept called LA Food Show, Inc. The Company accounts for this investment in accordance with the equity method of accounting as interpreted by the Accounting Principles Board (APB) No. 18, “The Equity Method of Accounting for Investments In Common Stock”. APB No. 18 requires an investor to record the initial investment at cost and adjust the carrying value of the investment to recognize the investor’s share of the earnings or loss after the date of acquisition.

 

Property and Equipment

 

Property and equipment is recorded at cost. Property and equipment is depreciated over the assets’ estimated useful lives using the straight-line method. Leasehold improvements are amortized using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the asset or the term of the related lease, whichever is shorter. The lives for furniture, fixtures, and equipment are ten years. The lives for buildings and leasehold improvements are the shorter of 20 years or the term of the related operating lease.

 

The Company assesses the impairment of long-lived assets whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. Factors considered important that could trigger an impairment review include a significant underperformance relative to expected historical or projected future operating results, a significant change in the manner of the use of the asset or a significant negative industry or economic trend. When the Company determines that the carrying value of long-lived assets may not be recoverable based

 

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upon the existence of one or more of the above indicators of impairment, the Company will measure any impairment based on a projected discounted cash flow method using a discount rate determined by our management.

 

Restaurant and Franchise Revenues

 

Revenues from the operation of company owned restaurants are recognized when sales occur. All fees from franchised operations are included in revenue as earned. Royalty fees are based on franchised restaurants’ revenues and are recorded by the Company in the period the related franchised restaurants’ revenues are earned.

 

Pre-opening Costs

 

The Company follows Statement of Position (SOP) 98-5, “Reporting on the Costs of Start-up Activities,” which was issued by the Accounting Standards Executive Committee and provides guidance on the financial reporting of the start-up costs and organization costs. The SOP requires costs of start-up activities and organization costs to be expensed as incurred.

 

Income Taxes

 

The Company utilizes the liability method of accounting for income taxes as set forth in SFAS No. 109, “Accounting for Income Taxes”. Under the liability method, deferred taxes are determined based on the difference between the financial statement and the tax basis of assets and liabilities using tax rates in effect in the years in which the differences are expected to reverse. Recognition of deferred tax assets is limited to amounts considered by management to be more likely than not of realization in future periods.

 

Stock-based Compensation

 

In December 2002, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued SFAS No. 148, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation—Transition and Disclosure.” SFAS No. 148 amends SFAS No. 123, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation,” to provide alternative methods of transition to SFAS No. 123’s fair value method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation. SFAS No. 148 also amends the disclosure provisions of SFAS No. 123 and APB No. 28, “Interim Financial Reporting” to require disclosure in the summary of significant accounting policies of the effects of an entity’s accounting policy with respect to stock-based employee compensation on reported net income and earnings per share in annual and interim financial statements. While SFAS No. 148 does not amend SFAS No. 123 to require companies to account for employee stock options using the fair value method, the disclosure provisions of SFAS No. 148 are applicable to all companies with stock-based employee compensation, regardless of whether they account for that compensation using the fair value method of SFAS No. 123 or the intrinsic value method of APB Opinion No. 25. As allowed by SFAS No. 123, we have elected to continue to utilize the accounting method prescribed by APB Opinion No. 25 and have adopted the disclosure requirements of SFAS No. 148.

 

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Results of Operations

 

Our operating results for the three months ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002 are expressed as a percentage of revenues below, except for restaurant operating costs and expenses, which are expressed as a percentage of restaurant sales:

 

    

Three Months Ended


 
    

March 30, 2003


    

March 31, 2002


 

Revenues:

             

Restaurant sales

  

98.9

%

  

99.0

%

Franchise and other revenues

  

1.1

 

  

1.0

 

    

  

Total revenues

  

100.0

 

  

100.0

 

    

  

Restaurant costs and expenses:

             

Cost of sales

  

24.2

 

  

24.6

 

Labor

  

37.2

 

  

36.1

 

Direct operating and occupancy

  

20.3

 

  

20.2

 

    

  

Total restaurant operating costs

  

81.7

 

  

80.9

 

General and administrative

  

6.0

 

  

6.2

 

Depreciation and amortization

  

5.1

 

  

4.9

 

Pre-opening

  

0.9

 

  

0.8

 

    

  

Operating income

  

7.2

 

  

8.1

 

Interest income

  

0.1

 

  

0.1

 

    

  

Income before income tax provision

  

7.3

 

  

8.2

 

Income tax provision

  

2.5

 

  

2.9

 

    

  

Net income

  

4.8

%

  

5.3

%

    

  

 

Three months ended March 30, 2003 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2002

 

Total Revenues.    Total revenues increased by $12.6 million, or 18.0%, to $82.9 million in the first quarter of 2003 from $70.2 million for the first quarter of 2002 due to a $12.4 million increase in restaurant sales and a $200,000 increase in franchise and other revenues. The increase in restaurant sales was due to the four new stores opened in 2003 accounting for $733,000, the 18 non-comparable restaurant sales of stores opened between the beginning of the first quarter of 2002 and the end of the fourth quarter of 2002 accounting for $10.5 million, with the remainder from comparable restaurant sales increases of 2.7%. The increase in comparable restaurant sales was driven by increases in the average guest check of approximately 4.0% compared to the first quarter of 2002, and a decrease in customer counts of approximately 1.3%. The increase in average guest check was due to approximately 1.1% in price increases with the remainder due to shifts in our menu mix. The increase in franchise and other revenues was due primarily to an increase in royalties from Kraft’s distribution of our frozen pizza.

 

Cost of sales.    Cost of sales increased by $2.8 million, or 16.2%, to $19.9 million for the first quarter of 2003 from $17.1 million for the first quarter of 2002. Cost of sales as a percentage of restaurant sales decreased to 24.2% for the first quarter of 2003 from 24.6% in the comparable quarter for the prior year. This decrease was primarily a result of lower lettuce prices compared with the prior year.

 

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Labor.    Labor increased by $5.4 million, or 21.5%, to $30.5 million for the first quarter of 2003 from $25.1 million for the first quarter of 2002. Labor as a percentage of restaurant sales increased to 37.2% for the first quarter of 2003 from 36.1% for the prior period. The increase in labor as a percentage of restaurant sales was primarily due to high hourly labor as a percentage of sales resulting from increased sales volatility due to severe weather in February and lower than anticipated restaurant sales.

 

Direct operating and occupancy.    Direct operating and occupancy increased by $2.6 million, or 18.8%, to $16.7 million for the first quarter of 2003 from $14.0 million for the first quarter of 2002. Direct operating and occupancy as a percentage of restaurant sales increased to 20.3% for the first quarter of 2003 from 20.2% for the prior period. The increase was primarily due to higher utility costs for natural gas compared to the first quarter of 2002.

 

General and administrative.    General and administrative increased by $657,000, or 15.2%, to $5.0 million for the first quarter of 2003 from $4.3 million for the first quarter of 2002. General and administrative as a percentage of total revenues decreased to 6.0% for the first quarter of 2003 compared to 6.2% in the prior period. The $657,000 increase in general and administrative expenses was primarily a result of additional operational personnel associated with new store openings and consulting fees in relation to Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. The decrease in general and administrative costs as a percentage of total revenues is a result of the Company’s increasing revenue base.

 

Depreciation and amortization.    Depreciation and amortization increased by $727,000, or 20.9%, to $4.2 million for the first quarter of 2003 from $3.5 million for the first quarter of 2002. The increase was primarily due to the 15 new restaurants opened after the first quarter of 2002 and four new restaurants opened during the first three months of 2003.

 

Pre-opening.    Pre-opening increased by $191,000, or 36.1%, to $720,000 for the first quarter of 2003 from $529,000 for the first quarter of 2002. The increase was due to opening four new restaurants in the first quarter of 2003 compared to three new restaurants in the first quarter of 2002.

 

Interest income.    Interest income increased by $30,000, or 36.6%, to $112,000 for the first quarter of 2003 from $82,000 for the first quarter of 2002. The increase was a result of the higher cash and investment balances at the beginning of 2003 compared to the prior year.

 

Income tax provision.    The income tax provision for the first quarter of 2003 and 2002 was based on annual effective tax rates applied to the income before income tax provision. A rate of 34.0% was applied to the first quarter of 2003 and 35.0% to the first quarter of 2002. These rates comprise the federal and state statutory rates, less any tax credits, based on the annual estimated effective tax rates for the year.

 

Liquidity and capital resources

 

In recent years, we have funded our capital requirements through cash flow from operations and

 

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proceeds from the issuance of common stock. For the first three months of 2003, net cash flow provided by operating activities was $5.3 million compared to $6.9 million for the first three months of 2002. Net cash flow provided by operating activities for the first three months of 2003 was lower than the first three months of 2002 due to a reduction in accounts payable and reduction in accrued liabilities.

 

We use cash to fund the development and construction of new restaurants and to remodel our existing restaurants. Net cash used in investing activities for the first three months of 2003 and 2002 was $21.8 million and $7.5 million, respectively. Investment activities consisted of capital expenditures of $11.2 million and $7.5 million for the first three months of 2003 and 2002, respectively. Additionally, for the first three months of 2003, we invested $8.6 million of our cash equivalents into short-term marketable securities so we may maximize our interest income. We also invested $2.0 million for a 25% equity interest in a new restaurant concept called LA Food Show. We opened 4 new restaurants in the first three months of 2003 compared to three restaurants in the same period last year. We will open 18 additional restaurants during the remainder of 2003, for a total of 22 full service restaurants this fiscal year. This compares to a total of 18 full service restaurants in fiscal year 2002. We expect that our planned future restaurants will require, on average, a total cash investment per restaurant, after landlord contributions, of approximately $1.3 million. Additionally, we anticipate pre-opening costs, on average, to be approximately $180,000 to $185,000; however, any unexpected delays in construction, labor shortages or other factors could result in higher than anticipated pre-opening costs.

 

Net cash provided by financing activities was $1.2 million for the first three months of 2003 compared to net cash provided by financing activities of $1.1 million for the first three months of 2002. Financing activities in the first three months of 2003 and 2002 consisted of proceeds from stock sales related to our Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) and common stock option exercises. ESPP contributions were $578,000 and $889,000 for the first three months of 2003 and 2002, respectively and proceeds from common stock option exercises were $576,000 and $238,000 for the first three months of 2003 and 2002, respectively.

 

We have a $20.0 million revolving line of credit, of which nothing was currently outstanding as of March 30, 2003. The line of credit expires on June 30, 2004 and bears interest at either LIBOR plus 1.0% or the bank base rate minus 0.75%. Availability under the credit facility is reduced by outstanding letters of credit, which totaled $2.8 million as of March 30, 2003. In addition, the credit facility includes financial and non-financial covenants with which we were in full compliance as of March 30, 2003.

 

Our capital requirements, including costs related to opening additional restaurants, have been and will continue to be significant. Our future cash requirements and the adequacy of available funds will depend on many factors, including the pace of expansion, real estate markets, site locations and the nature of the arrangements negotiated with landlords. We believe that our current cash balances, together with anticipated cash flows from operations and funds anticipated to be available from our credit facility, will be sufficient to satisfy our working capital and capital expenditure requirements on a short-term and long-term basis. Changes in our operating plans, acceleration of our expansion plans, lower than anticipated sales, increased expenses, noncompliance with our credit facility financial and non-financial covenant requirements or other

 

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events may cause us to seek additional financing sooner than anticipated. Additional financing may not be available on acceptable terms, or at all. Failure to obtain additional financing as needed could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

 

As of March 30, 2003 we had no financing transactions, arrangements or other relationships with any unconsolidated entities or related parties, except as described below in “Related Party Transactions.” Additionally, we had no financing arrangements involving synthetic leases or trading activities involving commodity contracts.

 

Related Party Transactions

 

On March 6, 2003 we paid $2.0 million for a 25.0% stake in LA Food Show, Inc., an upscale family casual dining concept. The concept was created by our co-founders, Larry S. Flax and Richard L. Rosenfield, who currently serve on our board as Co-Chairmen. Messrs. Flax and Rosenfield own the remaining 75.0% of equity in LA Food Show, Inc. Under the terms of the agreement we reserve the right of first negotiation for the 75.0% of outstanding equity we do not currently own. We have pre-emptive rights in future financings by LA Food Show so long as we maintain an ownership interest of at least 15.0%, and are entitled to one of three seats on the LA Food Show board of directors so long as we exercise our preemptive rights and maintain at least a 23.0% ownership interest. We have not made any commitments or guarantees on behalf of LA Food Show, Inc., and we do not expect to do so. We have accounted for this investment in accordance with the equity method of accounting as interpreted by APB No. 18, “The Equity Method of Accounting for Investments In Common Stock”. APB No. 18 requires an investor to record the initial investment at cost and adjust the carrying value of its investment to recognize the investor’s share of the earnings or loss after the date of acquisition.

 

On August 24, 2001, we loaned one of our officers $65,000. The loan was supported by a full recourse promissory note, which bears interest at 7.5% per annum. The full recourse promissory note was paid in full, including accrued interest, upon maturation in February 2003.

 

One of our directors, Rick J. Caruso, also serves as President of CAH Restaurants of California, LLC. We have entered into franchise and development agreements with CAH Restaurants of California, LLC pursuant to which it currently operates two California Pizza Kitchen restaurants. CAH Restaurants of California, LLC pays franchise and royalty fees to us under these agreements. We recorded an aggregate of $61,000 and $63,000 in such fees during the three months ended March 30, 2003 and March 31, 2002, respectively.

 

Inflation

 

The primary inflationary factors affecting our operations are food and labor costs. A large number of our restaurant personnel are paid at rates based on the applicable minimum wage, and increases in the minimum wage directly affect our labor costs. Many of our leases require us to pay for taxes, maintenance, repairs, insurance and utilities, all of which are generally subject to inflationary increases. We believe inflation has not had a material impact on our results of operations in recent years.

 

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Risk Factors

 

Our growth strategy requires us to open new restaurants at an accelerated pace. We may not be able to achieve this planned expansion.

 

We are pursuing an accelerated, but disciplined, growth strategy which to be successful depends on our ability, and the ability of our franchisees and licensees, to open new restaurants and to operate these new restaurants on a profitable basis. The success of our planned expansion will be dependent upon numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control; including the hiring, training and retention of qualified operating personnel, especially managers; identification and availability of suitable restaurant sites; competition for restaurant sites; negotiation of favorable lease terms; timely development of new restaurants, including the availability of construction materials and labor; management of construction and development costs of new restaurants; securing required governmental approvals and permits; competition in our markets and general economic conditions.

 

Our success depends on our ability to locate a sufficient number of suitable new restaurant sites.

 

One of our biggest challenges in meeting our growth objectives will be to secure an adequate supply of suitable new restaurant sites. We have experienced delays in opening some of our restaurants and may experience delays in the future. There can be no assurance that we will be able to find sufficient suitable locations for our planned expansion in any future period. Delays or failures in opening new restaurants could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows.

 

We could face labor shortages, which could slow our growth.

 

Our success depends in part upon our ability to attract, motivate and retain a sufficient number of qualified employees, including restaurant managers, kitchen staff and servers, necessary to keep pace with our expansion schedule. Qualified individuals of the requisite caliber and number needed to fill these positions are in short supply in some areas. Although we have not experienced any significant problems in recruiting or retaining employees, any future inability to recruit and retain sufficient individuals may delay the planned openings of new restaurants. Any such delays or any material increases in employee turnover rates in existing restaurants could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows. Additionally, competition for qualified employees could require us to pay higher wages to attract sufficient employees, which could result in higher labor costs.

 

Our expansion into new markets may present increased risks due to our unfamiliarity with the area.

 

As part of our expansion strategy we will be opening up restaurants in markets in which we have no prior operating experience. These new markets may have different competitive conditions, consumer tastes and discretionary spending patterns than our restaurants in our existing markets. In addition, our new restaurants will typically take several months to reach budgeted operating levels due to problems associated with new restaurants, including lack of market awareness, inability to hire sufficient staff and other factors. Although we have attempted to mitigate these factors by paying careful attention to training and staffing needs, there can be no assurance that we will be successful in operating new restaurants on a profitable basis.

 

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Our expansion may strain our infrastructure, which could slow our restaurant development.

 

We also face the risk that our existing systems and procedures, restaurant management systems, financial controls, and information systems will be inadequate to support our planned expansion. We cannot predict whether we will be able to respond on a timely basis to all of the changing demands that our planned expansion will impose on management and these systems and controls. If we fail to continue to improve our information systems and financial controls or to manage other factors necessary for us to achieve our expansion objectives, our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows could be materially adversely affected.

 

Our restaurant expansion strategy focuses primarily on further penetrating existing markets. This strategy can cause sales in some of our existing restaurants to decline.

 

In accordance with our expansion strategy, we intend to open new restaurants primarily in our existing markets. Since we typically draw customers from a relatively small radius around each of our restaurants, the sales performance and customer counts for restaurants near the area in which a new restaurant opens may decline due to cannibalization of the existing restaurant’s customer base.

 

Our operations are susceptible to changes in food and supply costs, which could adversely affect our margins.

 

Our profitability depends, in part, on our ability to anticipate and react to changes in food and supply costs. Our centralized purchasing staff negotiates prices for all of our ingredients and supplies through either contracts (terms of one month up to one year) or commodity pricing formulas. Our national master distributor delivers goods at a set, flat fee per case twice a week to all of our restaurants. Our contract with our national master distributor, Meadowbrook Meat Company, Inc., expires in June 2004. Furthermore, various factors beyond our control, including adverse weather conditions and governmental regulations, could also cause our food and supply costs to increase. We cannot predict whether we will be able to anticipate and react to changing food and supply costs by adjusting our purchasing practices. A failure to do so could adversely affect our operating results or cash flows.

 

Changes in consumer preferences or discretionary consumer spending could negatively impact our results.

 

Our restaurants feature pizzas, pastas, salads and appetizers in an upscale, family-friendly, casual environment. Our continued success depends, in part, upon the popularity of these foods and this style of informal dining. Shifts in consumer preferences away from this cuisine or dining style could materially adversely affect our future profitability. Also, our success depends to a significant extent on numerous factors affecting discretionary consumer spending, including economic conditions, disposable consumer income and consumer confidence. Adverse changes in these factors could reduce customer traffic or impose practical limits on pricing, either of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows. Like other restaurant chains, we can also be materially adversely affected by negative publicity concerning food quality, illness, injury, publication of government or industry findings concerning food products served by us, or other health concerns or operating issues stemming from one restaurant or a limited number of restaurants.

 

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Forty percent of our U.S. based restaurants are located in California. As a result, we are highly sensitive to negative occurrences in that state.

 

We and our franchisees currently operate a total of 57 restaurants in California (49 are company owned and eight are owned by franchisees), of which 43 are concentrated in the greater Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan areas. As a result, we are particularly susceptible to adverse trends and economic conditions in California, including adverse consequences stemming from higher energy prices for gas and electricity. In addition, given our geographic concentration, negative publicity regarding any of our restaurants in California could have a material adverse effect on our business and operations, as could other regional occurrences such as local strikes, earthquakes or other natural disasters.

 

Rising insurance costs could negatively impact profitability.

 

The cost of insurance (workers compensation insurance, general liability insurance, health insurance and directors and officers liability) have risen significantly in 2002 and are expected to continue to increase in 2003. These increases could have a negative impact on our profitability if we are not able to negate the effect of such increases by continuing to improve our operating efficiencies. Compliance with changing regulation of corporate governance and public disclosure may result in additional expenses.

 

Keeping abreast of, and in compliance with, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, new SEC regulations and Nasdaq Stock Market rules, has required an increased amount of management attention and external resources. We remain committed to maintaining high standards of corporate governance and public disclosure. As a result, we intend to invest all reasonably necessary resources to comply with evolving standards, and this investment may result in increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities.

 

The restaurant industry is affected by litigation and publicity concerning food quality, health and other issues, which can cause customers to avoid our restaurants and result in liabilities.

 

We are sometimes the subject of complaints or litigation from customers or employees alleging illness, injury or other food quality, health or operational concerns. Adverse publicity resulting from these allegations may materially adversely affect our restaurants, regardless of whether the allegations are valid

or whether California Pizza Kitchen is liable. In fact, we are subject to the same risks of adverse publicity resulting from these sorts of allegations even if the claim involves one of our franchisees or licensees. Further, employee claims against us based on, among other things, wage discrimination, harassment or wrongful termination may divert our financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit the future performance of our operations. We have been subject to these employee claims before, and a significant increase in the number of these claims or any increase in the number of successful claims could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows. We also are subject to some states’ “dram shop” statutes. These statutes generally

 

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provide a person injured by an intoxicated person the right to recover damages from an establishment that wrongfully served alcoholic beverages to the intoxicated person.

 

Future changes in financial accounting standards may cause adverse unexpected operating results and affect our reported results of operations.

 

A change in accounting standards can have a significant effect on our reported results and may affect our reporting of transactions completed before the change is effective. As an example, any changes requiring that we record compensation expense in our consolidated statements of income for employee stock options using the fair value method could have a significant negative effect on our reported results. New pronouncements and varying interpretations of pronouncements have occurred and may occur in the future. Changes to existing accounting rules or the questioning of current accounting practices may adversely affect our reported financial results.

 

ITEM 3.    QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISKS

 

Our market risk exposures are related to our cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities. Cash and cash equivalents are invested in highly liquid short-term investments with maturities of less than three months as of the date of purchase. We are exposed to market risk from changes in market prices related to our investments in marketable securities. As of March 30, 2003 we held $8.6 million in marketable securities. Changes in interest rates affect the investment income we earn on our investments and, therefore, impact our cash flows and results of operations.

 

In addition, we have a $20.0 million line of credit agreement with Bank of America, N.A. that expires on June 30, 2004. Interest on the line of credit is calculated on either the bank base rate minus 0.75% or LIBOR plus 1.0%. Currently, there is no outstanding balance under this agreement. Should we draw on this line in the future, changes in interest rates would affect the interest expense on these loans and, therefore, impact our prospective cash flows and results of operations.

 

Many of the food products purchased by us are affected by changes in weather, production, availability, seasonality and other factors outside our control. In an effort to control some of this risk, we have entered into some fixed price purchase commitments with terms of no more than one year. In addition, we believe that almost all of our food and supplies are available from several sources, which helps to control food commodity risks.

 

ITEM 4.    CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

 

Our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal controls, disclosure controls and procedures within 90 days of the filing date of this report in accordance with Rule 13a-14 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Based on that evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that such controls and procedures are effective in ensuring that all material information required to be filed in this quarterly report has been made known to them in a timely fashion. There have been no significant changes in our internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect these controls subsequent to the date the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer completed their evaluation.

 

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PART II.    OTHER INFORMATION

 

ITEM 1.    LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

 

On February 10, 2003, one of our former servers filed a class action complaint against us in Orange County Superior Court in California. The plaintiff alleges that we failed to give our food servers, bussers, runners and bartenders rest and meal breaks as required by California law. Under the California Labor Code, an employer must pay each employee one additional hour of pay at the employee’s regular rate of compensation for each work day that the required meal or rest period is not provided. The plaintiff also alleges that additional penalties are owed as a consequence of a resulting failure to pay all wages due at the time of termination of employment and characterizing these alleged breaches as unfair business practices. If the plaintiff is able to achieve class certification and prevail on the merits of the case, we could potentially be liable for significant amounts. We have investigated the claims and have responded to the Complaint. No date has been set for a hearing on class certification or for trial. We believe that all of our employees were provided with the opportunity to take all required meal and rest breaks. Additionally we believe all terminated employees have been paid fairly and in compliance with federal, state and/or local laws and as such, we intend to vigorously defend our position.

 

We are also subject to other private lawsuits, administrative proceedings and claims that arise in the ordinary course of our business. Such claims typically involve claims from guests, employees and others related to operational issues common to the foodservice industry. A number of such claims may exist at any given time. We could be affected by adverse publicity resulting from such allegations, regardless of whether or not such allegations are valid or whether we are determined to be liable. From time to time, we are also involved in lawsuits with respect to infringements of, or challenges to, our registered trademarks. We believe that the final disposition of such lawsuits and claims will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

 

ITEM 6.    EXHIBITS AND REPORTS ON FORM 8-K

 

a)    Exhibits

 

Exhibit 10.16

  

Executive Retirement Savings Plans and amendments thereto

Exhibit 99.1

  

Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Exhibit 99.2

  

Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

b)     Reports on Form 8-K

We filed the Company’s earnings release issued on April 22, 2003 on Form 8-K under Item 12 on April 25, 2003.

 

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SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

 

Dated: May 2, 2003

 

       

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN, INC.

           

By:

 

/s/    FREDERICK R. HIPP         


               

Frederick R. Hipp

Chief Executive Officer

         
         
           

By:

 

/s/    GREGORY S. LEVIN        


               

Gregory S. Levin

Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

(Also signing as Chief Accounting Officer)

 

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CERTIFICATIONS

 

I, Frederick R. Hipp, certify that:

 

1. I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form l0-Q of California Pizza Kitchen, Inc.;

 

2. Based on my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly report;

 

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14) for the registrant and we have:

 

(a) designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;

 

(b) evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this quarterly report (the “Evaluation Date”); and

 

(c) presented in this quarterly report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures based on our evaluation as of the Evaluation Date;

 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent function):

 

(a) all significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls which could adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data and have identified for the registrant’s auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and

 

(b) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal controls;

 

6. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I have indicated in this quarterly report whether or not there were significant changes in internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect internal controls subsequent to the date of our most recent evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

 

May 2, 2003

 

 

By:

 

/s/    FREDERICK R. HIPP        


   

Frederick R. Hipp

Chief Executive Officer

 

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I, Gregory S. Levin, certify that:

 

1. I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form l0-Q of California Pizza Kitchen, Inc;

 

2. Based on my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly report;

 

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14) for the registrant and we have:

 

(a) designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;

 

(b) evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this quarterly report (the “Evaluation Date”); and

 

(c) presented in this quarterly report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures based on our evaluation as of the Evaluation Date;

 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent function):

 

(a) all significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls which could adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data and have identified for the registrant’s auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and

 

(b) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal controls;

 

6. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I have indicated in this quarterly report whether or not there were significant changes in internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect internal controls subsequent to the date of our most recent evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

 

May 2, 2003

 

 

By:

 

/s/ GREGORY S. LEVIN         


   

Gregory S. Levin

Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

(Also signing as Chief Accounting Officer)

 

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INDEX TO EXHIBITS

 

Exhibit No.


  

Exhibit Title


10.16

  

Executive Retirement Savings Plans and amendments thereto

99.1

  

Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

99.2

  

Certification Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

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