Julia Stewart thought she had done everything right. As president of Applebee’s, she built what she calls a “pretty remarkable” team, doubled the stock price, and put the struggling restaurant chain back on its feet. Confident in her record, she approached the CEO’s office expecting the top job. Instead, she got a blunt “No. Not ever.”That moment, Stewart says, became the turning point of her career. Speaking on the Matthews Mentality Podcast in April 2025, the now–CEO of DineEquity Inc. recalled how the rejection fueled her next big move.“I thought he meant, ‘No, not today,’” Stewart said of the conversation. “But he said, ‘No, not ever.’”The blow was personal. But it didn’t break her. Stewart left Applebee’s and joined IHOP, where she spent five years reviving the brand’s image and performance.Then came the full-circle moment. Stewart led IHOP’s $2.3 billion acquisition of Applebee’s, bringing the chain that once rejected her under her control. “Now, obviously, ultimately, you don’t borrow $2.3 billion for revenge. You just don’t do that. But we did borrow $2.3 billion. We did buy Applebee’s,” she said.One of her first calls? Informing the former Applebee’s CEO, the same one who had denied her the top role, that his services were no longer required.Looking back, Stewart described her business style after that defining chapter: “I became a stone-cold killer.”Her story has since become a corporate legend, proof that sometimes the harshest rejection sets the stage for the most powerful comeback.
