Eric Hartman
About Eric Hartman
Eric Hartman, age 52, is Chief Development Officer (CDO) of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. since September 2021 and has served as CDO of First Watch Restaurants, Inc. (subsidiary) since November 2016, following senior real estate/development roles in casual dining and founding a development services firm . Under his tenure, the company has emphasized aggressive, disciplined unit growth, opening 17 system-wide restaurants in Q2 2025, reaching 600 locations, and maintaining a robust pipeline of 130+ sites with unit economics targeting ~$2.7M year-3 AUV and ~35% cash-on-cash returns . Company revenues grew from $601.2M in FY2021 to $1,015.9M in FY2024, with Adjusted EBITDA of $113.8M used as the core annual bonus metric across executives in FY2024 *.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. | Vice President of Real Estate and Development | 2001–2014 | Led real estate and development for national casual dining concepts |
| SEVA Development Services LLC | Founder and President | 2014–2016 | Provided development services; leadership of site selection and buildout |
| First Watch Restaurants, Inc. (subsidiary) | Chief Development Officer | 2016–present | Built scalable NRO pipeline; geographic expansion and unit growth |
External Roles
- Not disclosed.
Performance Compensation
FY2024 Executive Bonus Plan design and outcomes (company-wide, applied to executive officers including the CDO):
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout % | Vesting/Payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EBITDA (Company) | 70% | Target set by Compensation Committee | $113.8M (as reported) | 113.1% for company performance portion | Cash per plan; eligibility conditioned on employment at payment date |
| Individual Objectives | 30% | 100% (as assessed annually) | 100% achievement for executive officers in FY2024 | 100% for individual portion | Cash per plan; Compensation Committee discretion to adjust |
Notes:
- Company pool funds only if >85% of target; max at ≥125.7% yields 200% pool; CDO participates as an executive officer; individual payouts for Eric Hartman are not separately disclosed .
Fixed Compensation
- Base salary, target bonus %, and actual bonus paid for Eric Hartman are not individually disclosed (Company, as an EGC, provides NEO-level details only) .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership for Eric Hartman is not individually disclosed in the proxy tables; executive and director aggregate ownership equals 6.0% as of March 24, 2025 .
- Insider Trading Policy prohibits pledging, margin accounts, short sales, options/derivatives, and hedging transactions in Company stock, supporting alignment and reducing risky leverage signals .
- Stock ownership guidelines are part of Corporate Governance Guidelines; specific multiples/requirements not detailed in the proxy text .
- Lock-up: In the November 2025 secondary offering by Advent-managed funds, Eric Hartman was listed among locked-up persons; restrictions covered sales, transfers, and hedging for 30 days after the final prospectus, with limited carve-outs and notice requirements for waivers .
Employment Terms
Executive Severance Plan (adopted March 2025; Eric Hartman participates as an executive officer):
| Provision | Non-CIC Termination (Without Cause / Good Reason) | CIC + Qualifying Termination (within 2 years) |
|---|---|---|
| Cash Severance Multiple (Base Salary) | 1.5x base salary for executive officers | 2.0x base salary for executive officers |
| Target Bonus | 1.0x target annual bonus (lump sum) | Multiple equal to CIC severance multiple × target annual bonus |
| Health Care (COBRA premium equivalent) | Multiple equal to severance multiple × annual premium | Multiple equal to CIC severance multiple × annual premium |
| Equity Treatment | Partial vesting governed by award agreements for certain change-in-control related terminations; full vesting under Severance Plan for qualifying CIC termination within 2 years | Full vesting of outstanding unvested awards under 2021 Plan |
| Clawback | Incentive-based compensation recoverable upon restatement per Nasdaq Rule 5608-compliant policy |
Additional alignment features:
- Equity grants generally vest over three years post-IPO; pre-IPO options vest over five years or specific schedules tied to IPO anniversaries .
- Equity grant values are intended to approximate peer group median, adjusted for role impact and performance .
Company Performance Context (During Hartman’s Tenure)
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($USD) | $601.2M | $730.2M | $891.6M | $1,015.9M |
| EBITDA ($USD) | $59.7M* | $57.2M* | $89.2M* | $101.9M* |
Values retrieved from S&P Global.*
Growth initiatives and development execution:
- Opened 13 restaurants in Q1 2025; 17 in Q2 2025; reached 600 system-wide restaurants across 31 states with strong NRO performance vs underwriting .
- Development pipeline: 130+ approved sites with continued second-generation site conversions; double-digit unit growth planned for 2026, advancing into 2027 .
- FY2024 Adjusted EBITDA of $113.8M served as the core company-wide bonus metric and exceeded target, driving 113.1% payout for the company portion .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Shift from stock options (e.g., FY2022 grants) to RSUs (FY2023–FY2024) for executives indicates preference for lower-risk, retention-focused equity, aligning with post-IPO practices .
- Bonus design is predominantly pay-for-performance with 70% weighting on Company Adjusted EBITDA and 30% on individual objectives; pool requires >85% of target to fund and caps at 200% when performance ≥125.7% .
- Clawback policy covers incentive-based compensation tied to financial reporting measures upon restatement, reinforcing governance controls .
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Hedging and pledging prohibited under Insider Trading Policy (reduces misalignment risk) .
- No related-party transactions above $120,000 since the beginning of the last fiscal year (low conflict-of-interest signal) .
- Material weaknesses in internal controls disclosed historically; remediation achieved for ITGC (as of Dec 31, 2023) and income tax accounting (as of Dec 29, 2024), with ongoing remediation efforts detailed (execution/controls risk trending lower) .
Say-on-Pay & Shareholder Feedback
- Company qualifies as an “emerging growth company” and is not required to submit say-on-pay or say-on-frequency votes; hence limited external feedback via advisory votes .
Investment Implications
- Development execution appears robust under Hartman’s oversight, with sustained unit growth, improved demographics, and strong NRO economics supporting long-term value creation; revenue has scaled materially since his CDO tenure began .
- Compensation alignment is reinforced by an Adjusted EBITDA-centric bonus plan and RSU-focused equity, plus strong clawback and anti-hedging/pledging policies, indicating healthy governance and retention levers .
- Severance/CIC economics (2.0x salary CIC, full equity vesting on qualifying CIC termination) reduce retention risk but could raise acquisition-related dilution risk; the broader lock-up and insider trading constraints temper near-term insider selling pressure post the November 2025 secondary .
- Visibility into Hartman’s individual ownership and grant details is limited (non-NEO), constraining granular skin-in-the-game analysis; nonetheless, aggregate policies and plan design support alignment with shareholders .