Nearly nine years ago, Buffalo Wings & Rings made their debut in the Texas market. Since then, they’ve spread rapidly throughout the rest of the sprawling state, and Texas has emerged as a crucial territory for the growing brand. To date, nearly one-third of Buffalo Wings & Rings’ locations are in the Lone Star State, and with the help of the brand’s original Texas pioneers—the South Texas development group—there’s many more on the way.

In South Texas, family ties run deep throughout the growing web of Buffalo Wings & Rings locations. Sometime around 2006, a family of entrepreneurs—who were living near the border of Texas and Mexico—approached the brand with an idea. They wanted to develop a sports restaurant, and they thought the concept of Buffalo Wings & Rings could really thrive in their area. By 2007, they were granted their first franchise agreement, and the family decided that their plan of attack was to target the Texas Triangle for growth—a region anchored by booming cities like Laredo, Corpus Christi and Brownsville. Development took off quickly, and within two years, the territory was filled.

“The South Texas group has a great reputation with the brand in the area. It’s been an incredibly collaborative relationship. They were able to tap into their family ties and contacts to really root themselves—and it stuck for them,” said Philip Schram, chief development officer for Buffalo Wings & Rings. “They’ve been successful because they did exactly what 101 of franchising tells you to do, and they then thrived because our product works extremely well in South Texas.”

According to Schram, the South Texas development group is responsible for nearly 70 percent of the brand’s locations in Texas. After opening five restaurants within two years, they’ve become living proof that it’s possible to do extremely well in a short time period in a concentrated area. And Schram believes that the lessons learned from their success can apply to the brand’s future growth throughout the rest of the state.

“Our goal is controlled growth in markets where we have found past successes, and South Texas best embodies that for Buffalo Wings & Rings,” Schram said. “Suddenly, local potential investors saw this restaurant popping up all over town. They saw how it was delighting guests, they saw that it was a product that people wanted and they saw that it was succeeding. People wanted to be a part of it. Creating more and more awareness of the brand helps to fuel it. That’s how this development group branched out to the entire Texas Triangle, and it’s a method that can work for everyone else, too.”

Schram believes that there’s still plenty of room to grow in Texas. And with the help of groups like the South Texas development team, coupled with the state’s strong food and family dining culture, he believes Buffalo Wings & Rings will continue to establish their credibility throughout the state.

“We’re excited to continue working with the South Texas development group, while simultaneously working our way upwards in Texas in cities like Houston and Dallas. Our possibilities are endless. When you see how many Chili’s, Applebee’s and other big restaurants there are in Texas, we realize we could have more than 100 Buffalo Wings & Rings here.”

To learn more about Buffalo Wings & Rings’ development plans, click here.