A&W Restaurants Looks To Expand Franchise Footprint in Illinois

A&W Restaurants, the 100-plus-year-old American food franchise, is targeting Illinois for the next phase of its franchise expansion strategy. The franchise currently has eight units in operation throughout the state, and brand leadership says there is room to develop 8X that amount.

“We’ve found fantastic success in Illinois,” said John Palumbo, A&W’s senior director of franchise development. “Our offerings resonate with people who are interested in authenticity, quality and value, and we’ve found an increasing demand for A&W restaurants throughout the Midwest.”

As A&W prepares to expand throughout Illinois, it is first targeting development opportunities in Chicago and Naperville, demonstrating the brand’s unique ability to support successful franchise operations in markets both small and large.

“Our model is designed to thrive in just about any market,” Palumbo said. “That is an enormous value for us and our franchisees, because it allows us to establish a footprint in places like Chicago, where there is a huge customer base and tons of foot traffic, and also small- and mid-size markets like Naperville, which are underserved by other chains, allowing A&W to stand out and stake out an outsized share of the market.”

One of A&W’s newest franchisees, Lee Fry, purchased a franchise location in North Aurora earlier this year. Fry says part of his attraction to the brand was its capacity for growth in his market.

“We plan on expanding with the brand pretty quickly,” Fry said. “We’re actually already in the process of looking for additional sites right now. We would like to open five locations in what we consider to be the prime Chicago suburbs over the next couple of years.”

As A&W prepares to onboard new franchise owners in the state, Palumbo says he has no doubt his team will find passionate and qualified candidates throughout Illinois.

“The great thing about this model is that it has been perfected and proven over the course of more than a century. There is very little room for error on the franchisee side,” he said. “We have built an incredible playbook for success. Our franchisees don’t need years of experience working in kitchens or owning businesses, they just need to see the value in what we offer, follow the playbook and get out in their community to build relationships and evangelize for the brand. There are plenty of folks in Illinois who know and love the A&W brand and are well equipped to succeed with our model.”

The total investment necessary to begin operation, not including rent or land costs, is $871,000 to $1,469,554 for a Freestanding Restaurant; $401,000 to $1,051,088 for an Inline Restaurant; and $276,000 to $704,000 for a Captive Restaurant, including a $15,000-$30,000 franchise fee.