• February 12, 2007

Marketing veteran George Williams is the new CMO at Applebee's International, where he will be responsible for marketing, advertising, the overall direction of Applebee's food and menu strategy, as well as research and development for the $4.7 billion brand.

Williams is the former svp/marketing for Blockbuster, where he led marketing efforts from 1997 to 2002. Most recently, he has served as a private marketing consultant. Williams also served as vp/field marketing and sales development at Pearle Vision Center, as vp/advertising and promotion at Long John Silver's Holdings and as vp/marketing for Days Inn, where he established the company as a national brand and helped triple its size in three years.