Soon to be Famous™ chicken finger franchise Layne’s Chicken Fingers continues to see rapid growth, and it’s positioned to be one of the prime chicken finger franchise opportunities to pursue.
While nearly everyone loves chicken, and the industry is widely recognized as a favorable one to invest in, getting in with a big-name chicken franchise that offers a standout business model, training, support and reputation entrepreneurs want can be difficult. Rather than investing in some of the big national names, many innovative franchisees are turning to Layne’s as an investment opportunity. Here’s why:
Layne’s has been a staple in College Station, Texas, since its birth in 1994. And in the past 30 years, it has successfully grown its network of passionate guests. From A&M alums who return to Layne’s when they’re in town for game day to people who have gotten married in Layne’s merch, the love for the brand is strong.
“Layne’s started in College Station, but it has grown so far beyond it,” said Chief Operating Officer Samir Wattar. “In addition to the restaurants we’ve established in key markets across the country, there are plenty of A&M grads who have since moved away from Texas but are big cheerleaders for us when they learn we’re coming to their new towns.”
A new prototype, introduced earlier this year, combines all the brand’s best practices into a single build-out. Though Layne’s has successfully modernized its design and layout in alignment with the best, most efficient practices, the leadership team hasn’t lost its flexibility, either.
“Our newest prototype is a game-changer, hands down,” said CEO Garrett Reed. “We work to incorporate as many aspects of the newest design into each build-out, but we also recognize that our franchisees know their market best. We’re not going to say no to a site or idea on principle alone. If we see how a potential site can be a great fit for the brand, we’re open to exploring potential build-out options with the owner.”
As Layne’s continues to grow its footprint, its same-store sales are following a positive trajectory as well. At the mid-year point, the brand saw double-digit same-store sales growth compared to the same time in 2023, accompanied by double-digit guest traffic.
Wattar points out that, for Layne’s, the simultaneous growth of both of these metrics is especially meaningful as it’s concrete proof that the brand is not just passing price hikes along to its guests and calling it sales growth — Layne’s is seeing true business growth.
“Layne’s restaurants aren’t always easy to run, but they’re simple to run,” Wattar said. “We have considered all aspects of operations to ensure we’re making the best possible use of the time, money and resources we have at hand.”
Wattar, who has been in operations for decades, has brought all of his expertise to the Layne’s team. By focusing on details as small as how many steps back-of-house team members have to take between different work stations, Wattar ensures everyone at the restaurant level can devote their attention to great teamwork, delicious food and an even better guest experience.
Layne’s knows what it’s good at, and it has no intentions of straying from its beloved classics. While the brand has embraced innovation over the years, introducing unique flavors and the occasional new menu item, it carefully considers each change before making it.
“There’s a new trend or ‘flavor of the day’ all the time, but we aren’t chasing those,” Reed said. “Something like spicy chicken had been in high demand for a while before we added it to the menu, and even then, we went through a careful development process to ensure the flavors and quality were up to par.”
For franchisees, this approach offers two primary benefits. By keeping a focused menu, the ordering and production process is quite easy, and there are less variables at play to potentially complicate processes. And when the team does choose to introduce a new item, local owners can do so with full confidence that it will be a true benefit to the business and its guests.
Layne’s is smaller than some of the chicken giants, but its leadership team doesn’t pack any less power. The home office has multiple restaurant and franchise veterans, real estate pros, and training and support moguls, and Mike Garratt (who bought out founder Mike Layne to become sole owner of the brand in 1999) is still on the board, providing additional insights as Layne’s grows.
“We’ve already gathered a powerful team of people at the home office, but that’s just the beginning,” Reed said. “We’ve been very intentional about growing our team. We want to make sure we have the necessary supports in place before we expand our system to the point that we need them. Staying ahead of demand keeps our ratio of support staff to owners strong, and we’re able to maintain a great company culture without overextending anyone at the home office.”
Unlike other major chicken franchises, Layne’s still has a substantial amount of white space across the country. Franchisees who invest with Layne’s now have the opportunity to join a powerful, proven brand while still retaining a bit more flexibility in both where and how many restaurants they develop.
While many chicken franchises require investments that can climb into the multi-million dollar range, Layne’s initial investment ranges from a reasonable $737,000 to $1,217,000.
“Our streamlined model and flexibility surrounding the restaurant build-out allows us to offer a more accessible opportunity,” Wattar said. “Even though our investment is lower than other chicken brands, the franchisee isn’t compromising on expertise, training or support.”
Layne’s teams take their chicken seriously. Themselves, on the other hand? Not so much. The entire Layne’s system embodies its mascot, the Astro Chicken. While people throughout the system can be “as casual as a chicken clucking around the farm,” as Reed says, things get more serious when running the business.
“We love to be casual and have fun, but when it comes to the business, we put our space helmets on,” Reed said. “Keeping this level of care and intention around what we do is what’s allowed us to continue standing out in the industry.”
“When making any decision related to the franchise system, I ask myself two questions: Is this protecting the brand? Is this protecting the franchisee?” Wattar said. “If I don’t feel a confident ‘yes’ about both of those, I’m not going to do it. Our franchisees have invested their time, energy and capital into this brand, and they’ve trusted us to uphold our end of the deal.”
Sometimes, protecting the brand and the franchisee may look like telling someone no or pointing someone in a different direction, but the leadership team’s dedication to its franchise partners runs deep, and franchisees nationwide reap the benefits on a daily basis.
As Layne’s continues its development, it is focused on growth with driven entrepreneurs who will be fierce advocates for the brand in their markets. Having already surpassed its 2024 development goals, Layne’s is focused on supporting the openings of hundreds of committed restaurants as it considers additional growth in Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, Florida, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/layneschickenfingers.
Layne's Chicken Fingers
SPONSORED
In a highly competitive chicken franchise market, the "Texas born and breaded" concept continues to present an attractive opportunity to prospective owners.
Soon to be Famous™ chicken finger franchise Layne’s Chicken Fingers continues to see rapid growth, and it’s positioned to be one of the prime chicken finger franchise opportunities to pursue.
While nearly everyone loves chicken, and the industry is widely recognized as a favorable one to invest in, getting in with a big-name chicken franchise that offers a standout business model, training, support and reputation entrepreneurs want can be difficult. Rather than investing in some of the big national names, many innovative franchisees are turning to Layne’s as an investment opportunity. Here’s why:
Layne’s has been a staple in College Station, Texas, since its birth in 1994. And in the past 30 years, it has successfully grown its network of passionate guests. From A&M alums who return to Layne’s when they’re in town for game day to people who have gotten married in Layne’s merch, the love for the brand is strong.
“Layne’s started in College Station, but it has grown so far beyond it,” said Chief Operating Officer Samir Wattar. “In addition to the restaurants we’ve established in key markets across the country, there are plenty of A&M grads who have since moved away from Texas but are big cheerleaders for us when they learn we’re coming to their new towns.”
A new prototype, introduced earlier this year, combines all the brand’s best practices into a single build-out. Though Layne’s has successfully modernized its design and layout in alignment with the best, most efficient practices, the leadership team hasn’t lost its flexibility, either.
“Our newest prototype is a game-changer, hands down,” said CEO Garrett Reed. “We work to incorporate as many aspects of the newest design into each build-out, but we also recognize that our franchisees know their market best. We’re not going to say no to a site or idea on principle alone. If we see how a potential site can be a great fit for the brand, we’re open to exploring potential build-out options with the owner.”
As Layne’s continues to grow its footprint, its same-store sales are following a positive trajectory as well. At the mid-year point, the brand saw double-digit same-store sales growth compared to the same time in 2023, accompanied by double-digit guest traffic.
Wattar points out that, for Layne’s, the simultaneous growth of both of these metrics is especially meaningful as it’s concrete proof that the brand is not just passing price hikes along to its guests and calling it sales growth — Layne’s is seeing true business growth.
“Layne’s restaurants aren’t always easy to run, but they’re simple to run,” Wattar said. “We have considered all aspects of operations to ensure we’re making the best possible use of the time, money and resources we have at hand.”
Wattar, who has been in operations for decades, has brought all of his expertise to the Layne’s team. By focusing on details as small as how many steps back-of-house team members have to take between different work stations, Wattar ensures everyone at the restaurant level can devote their attention to great teamwork, delicious food and an even better guest experience.
Layne’s knows what it’s good at, and it has no intentions of straying from its beloved classics. While the brand has embraced innovation over the years, introducing unique flavors and the occasional new menu item, it carefully considers each change before making it.
“There’s a new trend or ‘flavor of the day’ all the time, but we aren’t chasing those,” Reed said. “Something like spicy chicken had been in high demand for a while before we added it to the menu, and even then, we went through a careful development process to ensure the flavors and quality were up to par.”
For franchisees, this approach offers two primary benefits. By keeping a focused menu, the ordering and production process is quite easy, and there are less variables at play to potentially complicate processes. And when the team does choose to introduce a new item, local owners can do so with full confidence that it will be a true benefit to the business and its guests.
Layne’s is smaller than some of the chicken giants, but its leadership team doesn’t pack any less power. The home office has multiple restaurant and franchise veterans, real estate pros, and training and support moguls, and Mike Garratt (who bought out founder Mike Layne to become sole owner of the brand in 1999) is still on the board, providing additional insights as Layne’s grows.
“We’ve already gathered a powerful team of people at the home office, but that’s just the beginning,” Reed said. “We’ve been very intentional about growing our team. We want to make sure we have the necessary supports in place before we expand our system to the point that we need them. Staying ahead of demand keeps our ratio of support staff to owners strong, and we’re able to maintain a great company culture without overextending anyone at the home office.”
Unlike other major chicken franchises, Layne’s still has a substantial amount of white space across the country. Franchisees who invest with Layne’s now have the opportunity to join a powerful, proven brand while still retaining a bit more flexibility in both where and how many restaurants they develop.
While many chicken franchises require investments that can climb into the multi-million dollar range, Layne’s initial investment ranges from a reasonable $737,000 to $1,217,000.
“Our streamlined model and flexibility surrounding the restaurant build-out allows us to offer a more accessible opportunity,” Wattar said. “Even though our investment is lower than other chicken brands, the franchisee isn’t compromising on expertise, training or support.”
Layne’s teams take their chicken seriously. Themselves, on the other hand? Not so much. The entire Layne’s system embodies its mascot, the Astro Chicken. While people throughout the system can be “as casual as a chicken clucking around the farm,” as Reed says, things get more serious when running the business.
“We love to be casual and have fun, but when it comes to the business, we put our space helmets on,” Reed said. “Keeping this level of care and intention around what we do is what’s allowed us to continue standing out in the industry.”
“When making any decision related to the franchise system, I ask myself two questions: Is this protecting the brand? Is this protecting the franchisee?” Wattar said. “If I don’t feel a confident ‘yes’ about both of those, I’m not going to do it. Our franchisees have invested their time, energy and capital into this brand, and they’ve trusted us to uphold our end of the deal.”
Sometimes, protecting the brand and the franchisee may look like telling someone no or pointing someone in a different direction, but the leadership team’s dedication to its franchise partners runs deep, and franchisees nationwide reap the benefits on a daily basis.
As Layne’s continues its development, it is focused on growth with driven entrepreneurs who will be fierce advocates for the brand in their markets. Having already surpassed its 2024 development goals, Layne’s is focused on supporting the openings of hundreds of committed restaurants as it considers additional growth in Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, Florida, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/layneschickenfingers.
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