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Cowboy Chicken launches 'cowboy cool' design to fuel expansion

September 14, 2016

Cowboy Chicken has refreshed its branding and created a new restaurant prototype in hopes of driving national expansion. The new design puts the company’s rotisserie front and center, and adds classic Americana features, including a cowboy mural wall, as well as welcoming "Howdy" signage and other details that celebrate "food as honest as a handshake," according to a company press release.

 Kim Jensen-Pitts, who joined the company in April 2015, led the rebranding efforts, partnering with St. Louis-based branding firm, Propaganda Inc., to bring a new authentic "cowboy cool" brand strategy to life. A contemporary, new logo communicates the modern appeal of the brand’s fresh and healthful menu offerings. 

Pitts called the interior design elements an eclectic collection of brand-relevant illustrations, photographs and 3D artwork reproduced on mixed materials, including metal, wood, rope, canvas and aged paper, to create a welcoming, warm and rustic brand experience.

"Our research shows that guest counts at the newly designed stores are more than 30 percent higher than at stores in the same market with the older design elements, making our franchise offering even more attractive to qualified new franchisees, who are key to growing the brand," said Cowboy Chicken President and CEO Sean Kennedy. "Our next step is to remodel several existing stores to demonstrate how the redesign can positively affect same-store sales and customer retention, while remaining focused on what Cowboy Chicken has always done best: Wood-fired rotisserie chicken and unique sides made from scratch."

The new restaurant design rolled out in three recent Dallas-area openings, as well as in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Katy, Texas. Cowboy Chicken franchise owner and operator Jimmy Hajeer, who has locations in Forney and Waxahachie, Texas, opened his new prototype restaurant in Wylie, Texas, in May.

"Cowboy Chicken is a beloved brand in this part of Texas, and the guest response to our new look has been positive across the board. We are seeing tangible results that have exceeded our expectations and increased the value of our investment in the brand," said Hajeer. "The 'cowboy cool' theme and the focus on chicken roasting over an open flame speak to the customer who comes for an authentic experience with delicious food and an inviting atmosphere."

Cowboy Chicken reported its strongest system-wide sales ever in 2015, and has signed franchise agreements to develop 66 new restaurants across the U.S. The comapny expects that by the end of this year, its unit count will be 23 restaurants in seven states, including new restaurants under construction in Atlanta and Oklahoma City. The company has additional franchise opportunities in Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina and plans to have 45 locations nationwide by 2018.

"The fast casual landscape is a competitive space with many players," said Jensen-Pitts. "But we know Cowboy Chicken has the potential for broad national appeal, and by evolving our concept and marketing, we can attract a new generation of millennial consumers."