Buffalo Wild Wings
Thursday, November 06, 2008
“I was the guy sitting at the bar, watching the game on the big screen and hitting on the girls,” Bill Zellmer will tell you.
“One day I looked around and thought ‘I could do this.’”
That was in 2002, and now six years later the young businessman is preparing to open his fifth and sixth stores.
Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar is a self-explanatory name. “If you want a great steak, we’re not your place. But if you want great wings, ribs and (an enjoyable) atmosphere ...,” Zellmer states proudly. And why not, he has the track record to prove he knows how to make the Buffalo Wild WIngs franchise work for his patrons.
He already has successful stores in Carbondale, Ill., Cape Girardeau, Sikeston and Poplar Bluff, with plans to open in Farmington and Mount Vernon, Ill., in coming months. The one in Farmington is expected to open Dec. 7.
The Farmington Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill will feature 5,600 square feet of enclosed space and 1,500 of patio area. The store will seat more than 300 patrons. And visitors can relax and view any of 40 plasma and high-definition televisions, including some 50- and 60-inch screens.
Considering the bar is the first business to locate in the new complex at the corner of Maple Valley Drive and Maple Street there should not be a concern about parking. Zellmer explains that while the restaurant maintains a “family atmosphere,” it is the type of dining experience where people meet for lunch or sometimes head to after the work day is over — usually arriving in separate vehicles. Plenty of parking is paramount.
“I like Farmington. It’s a growing community. The area has a community college, great high schools, and the other restaurants are doing well,” Zellmer says. “I think Farmington is going to be a great town for us.”
THE FRANCHISE
According to background data available on the parent company’s Web site, in 1982 Jim Disbrow and Scott Lowery were living in Columbus, Ohio, recent transplants from Buffalo, N.Y.
The two men “found themselves craving the authentic, Buffalo, NY-style chicken wings that they’d grown to love. The problem was that they were nowhere to be found. The two friends decided to take matters into their own hands and created their own signature sauce recipe to satisfy their craving.”
The duo’s wings began drumming up great demand and the pair opened up their first restaurant, “Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck” near the campus of The Ohio State University. A “weck” refers to a type of sandwich roll that was originally used for the restaurant’s sandwich offerings. The restaurant was a hit with college students and has since drawn an even larger following.
Disbrow and Lowery opened a number of Buffalo Wild Wings restaurants at a rapid pace at locations primarily on or near Midwest college campuses. Ohio continues to have the company’s largest statewide presence.
The chain of bar and grills “focus on great wings, a wide variety of beer and plenty of sports on dozens of TVs.”
The two founders grew the company to 35 locations in its first 12 years. “Then in 1994, Sally Smith came aboard as CFO and put in place the infrastructure needed to establish the accounting, human resources, finance and marketing departments. In 1996, Smith was named CEO and began to tackle the more challenging task of broadening the appeal of the chain by revising the name, redesigning the buildings and evolving from a college bar to a sports bar and grill that would attract a wider audience.”
Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill went public in November of 2003. In 2006, the company launched its first national advertising campaign. In 2007, Buffalo Wild Wings celebrated 25 successful years in business and was ranked number 27 by Forbes in its list of the “200 Best Small Companies.”
Now the company is more than half way to achieving its goal of having more than 1,000 restaurants across the country — a goal set to be achieved by 2012.
AND THE NUMBERS
The bar and grills offer 14 signature sauces ranging from “Sweet BBQ” to “Blazin”. There’s also 16 starters and snacks, four sides fixed in a variety of ways, and a lengthy menu.
The parent company offers the following statistics:
• Buffalo Wild Wings sells on average over 1.2 million wings in one-week;
• Sells on average over 433 million wings in one-year;
• Sold an estimated 3.4 million wings on Super Bowl Sunday 2007.
“One day I looked around and thought ‘I could do this.’”
That was in 2002, and now six years later the young businessman is preparing to open his fifth and sixth stores.
Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar is a self-explanatory name. “If you want a great steak, we’re not your place. But if you want great wings, ribs and (an enjoyable) atmosphere ...,” Zellmer states proudly. And why not, he has the track record to prove he knows how to make the Buffalo Wild WIngs franchise work for his patrons.
He already has successful stores in Carbondale, Ill., Cape Girardeau, Sikeston and Poplar Bluff, with plans to open in Farmington and Mount Vernon, Ill., in coming months. The one in Farmington is expected to open Dec. 7.
The Farmington Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill will feature 5,600 square feet of enclosed space and 1,500 of patio area. The store will seat more than 300 patrons. And visitors can relax and view any of 40 plasma and high-definition televisions, including some 50- and 60-inch screens.
Considering the bar is the first business to locate in the new complex at the corner of Maple Valley Drive and Maple Street there should not be a concern about parking. Zellmer explains that while the restaurant maintains a “family atmosphere,” it is the type of dining experience where people meet for lunch or sometimes head to after the work day is over — usually arriving in separate vehicles. Plenty of parking is paramount.
“I like Farmington. It’s a growing community. The area has a community college, great high schools, and the other restaurants are doing well,” Zellmer says. “I think Farmington is going to be a great town for us.”
THE FRANCHISE
According to background data available on the parent company’s Web site, in 1982 Jim Disbrow and Scott Lowery were living in Columbus, Ohio, recent transplants from Buffalo, N.Y.
The two men “found themselves craving the authentic, Buffalo, NY-style chicken wings that they’d grown to love. The problem was that they were nowhere to be found. The two friends decided to take matters into their own hands and created their own signature sauce recipe to satisfy their craving.”
The duo’s wings began drumming up great demand and the pair opened up their first restaurant, “Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck” near the campus of The Ohio State University. A “weck” refers to a type of sandwich roll that was originally used for the restaurant’s sandwich offerings. The restaurant was a hit with college students and has since drawn an even larger following.
Disbrow and Lowery opened a number of Buffalo Wild Wings restaurants at a rapid pace at locations primarily on or near Midwest college campuses. Ohio continues to have the company’s largest statewide presence.
The chain of bar and grills “focus on great wings, a wide variety of beer and plenty of sports on dozens of TVs.”
The two founders grew the company to 35 locations in its first 12 years. “Then in 1994, Sally Smith came aboard as CFO and put in place the infrastructure needed to establish the accounting, human resources, finance and marketing departments. In 1996, Smith was named CEO and began to tackle the more challenging task of broadening the appeal of the chain by revising the name, redesigning the buildings and evolving from a college bar to a sports bar and grill that would attract a wider audience.”
Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill went public in November of 2003. In 2006, the company launched its first national advertising campaign. In 2007, Buffalo Wild Wings celebrated 25 successful years in business and was ranked number 27 by Forbes in its list of the “200 Best Small Companies.”
Now the company is more than half way to achieving its goal of having more than 1,000 restaurants across the country — a goal set to be achieved by 2012.
AND THE NUMBERS
The bar and grills offer 14 signature sauces ranging from “Sweet BBQ” to “Blazin”. There’s also 16 starters and snacks, four sides fixed in a variety of ways, and a lengthy menu.
The parent company offers the following statistics:
• Buffalo Wild Wings sells on average over 1.2 million wings in one-week;
• Sells on average over 433 million wings in one-year;
• Sold an estimated 3.4 million wings on Super Bowl Sunday 2007.
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