Steve Palmer: Values First
You might say Steve Palmer took along, twisting and treacherous road to wind up at The Indigo Road Group, the successful restaurant group for which he serves as managing director. For the Atlanta native and one-time homeless teenager, it was a road with some dead-ends and many bad turns and rock bottoms, mostly related to the recurrent potholes of his substance-and alcohol-abuse disorder. But his mainstay, and indeed his salvation, he readily admits, has been an innate love of and passion for the hospitality industry.
Palmer came to Charleston in 1990 after an adolescence spent in and out of jail and various recovery programs. His sister lived here, and he figured it was as good a place as any to try to start fresh. With no college degree and little experience, job prospects were slim. When he was hired as a resort bartender, this initial taste of the food and beverage world—with its fast pace and teamwork—marked the first time Palmer says he experienced “unconditional love and acceptance.” He was good at it—the people-pleasing, the hard work—but he was also really good at the drinking and drugs that sadly often come with the territory.
Despite his struggles with alcoholism, Palmer eventually worked his way up to the highest echelons of Charleston fine dining, being hired as manager of the Peninsula Grill. There his boss and mentor, Hank Holliday, appreciated Palmer’s talents and potential, and issued an ultimatum that saved his life.
Palmer counts himself among the lucky ones. He got sober, and was welcomed back into the industry, where he went on to become the lauded visionary he is today—with successes like The Cocktail Club, Indaco, The Macintosh, Oak Steakhouse and O-Ku under his purview, and more than 950 employees across six cities.
Sure he understands and appreciates excellent food and service, and has the business savvy to run a profitable enterprise, but the real key to his company’s success is that Palmer leads with heart. Indigo Road Group is an “employees first” company, which initiated an interest-free home down-payment program for employees and covers mental health benefits, no questions asked, among other benefits.
“I used to think that talking overtly about ‘values’ in the workplace would feel corporate—a dirty word for me—but now I talk values about all day long. When I meet with new employees, I begin by talking about our company values. I give them my cell number, and encourage them to call me if they ever see us not living up to them,” he says.
Beyond his own employees, Palmer shares his hard-won wisdom through Ben’s Friends, a national nonprofit that he founded with Charleston Grill’s Mickey Bakst, to shine a light on the industry’s shadow of substance abuse and help other colleagues overcome addiction.
“We can’t keep losing people to overdoses, to burnout, to alcoholism, to suicide,” he writes in his recently published memoir, Say Grace.
“Whatever your values are, be authentic. Sing them loud and proud and people will be drawn to you,” Palmer says. “Culture for me is a business model.”
Indigo Road Hospitality Group owns over 20 restaurants in the Southeast with many in Charleston including O-Ku, The Cocktail Club, The Macintosh, Indaco, Mercantile and Mash, Bar Mash and The Cedar Room.
