Speaking to more than 600 franchise owners, franchise employees and corporate team members at this year’s virtual Buffalo Wild Wings Franchise Owner’s Meeting, Brand President Lyle Tick thanked the teams for an unprecedented year, where they stood up an off-premise model with curbside, takeout, delivery and the very first Buffalo Wild Wings GO. Tick also acknowledged a milestone year in food and beverage innovation, where Buffalo Wild Wings won the coveted 2020 MenuMasters Award for Best Menu Revamp.
“Over the last year we’ve improved our boneless wings, moved all chicken to hand-breaded, worked on our beer and cocktail mix and made clear progress on the quality and value we deliver to our guests,” Tick said.
The future is bright for Buffalo Wild Wings, Tick added, as the brand continues to rely on its great franchise owners and team members to inspire legendary experiences among friends.
“I could not be more proud of how our system, our franchise owners and our sports bar team members have operated over the last year,” Tick said. “It’s been truly amazing to see how our teams have continued to nourish our communities and live our brand values every day. I’ve never been more optimistic about our future.”
Rita Patel, Chief Marketing Officer
After just five weeks with Buffalo Wild Wings, Rita Patel couldn’t be more confident about the brand’s future. In addition to working through COVID-19 in an industry-leading way, Buffalo Wild Wings has shown remarkable progress over the last few years on its menu and experiences the brand offers.
“The key progress we have made has had a great impact, with a fully-revamped menu that is delicious and a return to our value conception with Traditional Tuesdays and Boneless Thursdays,” Patel said. “We have launched compelling brand campaigns, held amazing activations and transformed sports bar experiences through expanded content like eSports and trivia.”
When it comes to writing the next chapter of the business, Patel is looking forward to the journey ahead.
“We’ll ensure easy experiences through off-premise and continue to offer more value, entice guests with innovative food and beverage platforms and lean into our loyalty base to expand reach with contactless experiences,” Patel said.
John Bowie, Chief Operating Officer
John Bowie opened with a thank you to teams across the country for the passion they’ve shown for Buffalo Wild Wings over the last year and the spirit of collaboration that has kept sports bars operating effectively, efficiently and safely.
“Our teams are the foundation of our business and critical to our success,” Bowie said. “And offering world-class service starts with putting a great company culture in place through programs like Brand Champ.”
In 2020, all company team members took part in Brand Champ, which continues to help shape the culture of Buffalo Wild Wings with a focus on diversity, inclusion and training. Buffalo Wild Wings also continues to offer a world of opportunity through its online training program, The U Learning Hub.
