With more than 25 years in the restaurant and food service industries, Conner Cupit has cultivated a wealth of knowledge and first-hand experience across a range of critical work streams from operations to brand marketing to business development and strategy & planning. He has worked with a wide variety of restaurant concepts, food brands, and companies from small, emerging startups to blue chip, global businesses. Conner brings this depth of experience to his role as Managing Partner and CEO of Greenbriar Partners, where he oversees all company operations and serves as the primary contact for all consulting clients, operating partners, and capital partners.

Conner is passionate about the restaurant business and obsessed with the guest experience. He believes in balancing the brand and the business simultaneously and approaches every day with this mindset. When working with clients, Conner takes a collaborative approach, seeking to understand the needs of the business and the shareholders, tailoring solutions to fit each situation. His wide-ranging restaurant and food experience has provided him with a broad perspective, allowing him to effectively convey information to the front lines of the restaurant, as well as to the boardroom.

BACKGROUND
After working in restaurants from a young age, Conner began his corporate career in the restaurant industry with Brinker International, where he worked in a variety of Brand Marketing and Business Development roles across several restaurant brands, including Chili's Grill & Bar, Maggiano’s Little Italy, Corner Bakery Café, On the Border, Romano’s Macaroni Grill, and Cozymel’s.

In 2012, he founded Greenbriar Restaurant Holdings which owned and operated several Rusty Taco restaurants in the DFW Market. These restaurants remain a part of the Greenbriar Restaurant Partners portfolio today. Conner also led the acquisition of two other emerging restaurant brands in 2024, following an extremely successful consulting engagement, adding to the Greenbriar portfolio. Prior to founding Greenbriar, Conner served as a marketing executive for PepsiCo, holding positions in Brand and Shopper Marketing, Channel Strategy, Product Innovation, and Foodservice.

EDUCATION
Conner received his MBA with dual concentraions Finance and Consulting from Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business and his BBA in General Management from Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business.