Did you know you can get some traditional Chick-Fil-A menu items in restaurants other than Chick-Fil-A? No, not similar items, but the exact same. Same chicken sandwiches, same dressings, even the same cups, napkins, and straws. That’s because the legendary founder of Chick-Fil-A, Truett Cathy, liked exploring other restaurant options.
Those other places are not chain stores. They are pretty much one-off eating establishments. But there is an important lesson here. Even when you have hit a level of success with your company beyond what most people will ever approach, it is still important to keep innovating and experimenting with new ideas.
Cathy’s specialty during his lifetime was eating establishments. So his other ventures, all still under the Chick-Fil-A corporate umbrella, are also dining ventures. One of his last projects before his death in September 2014 was Luau.
This restaurant focuses on a Hawaiian theme with the goal of transporting people from their hometown in Georgia to one evening of a tropical vacation. Luau is a sit-down family restaurant where the young ones (or old ones too) can play with ukuleles or maracas. You can still get a chicken sandwich, at only about $3, but you can also order entrees like steak, fish tacos, and calamari. Luau is located in Fayetteville, Georgia, along with Chick-Fil-A’s corporate headquarters.
Also in Fayetteville you can find Truett’s Pizza Café, open since 2008. The chicken sandwich is available there too, but you can also get calzones and specialty pizzas. One of those pizzas is called the “Legacy” and was created in honor of Cathy. It has fried chicken, mozzarella, sliced pickles, all drizzled with Truett’s house dressing and served on pizza crust. Chick-Fil-A also has a number of restaurants still open under the original name of the chain restaurants, Dwarf Grill and Truett’s Grill.
Building a brand includes good public relations, but there are other factors too. Once your business reaches a certain level of success, you will either innovate for further growth or your business will stagnate and become yesterday’s news. Unless you offer new products or services that brand your company, your business stops being relevant.
Whatever you think of Cathy and his chain, you can at least follow many of the steps he took toward success. And one of those steps was innovating and trying new approaches while still serving the main customer base with what they have come to expect.
