The Soon to be Famous™chicken finger franchise passed the 30-unit mark, opening twice as many restaurants in the first half of 2025 as it did in all of 2024.
FRISCO, Texas, July 14, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Texas "Born and Breaded" Layne's Chicken Fingers is entering the second half of the year having made remarkable progress in the first two quarters. At the mid-year point, the brand reached the 30-restaurant mark, growing its footprint by over 50% in just six months. For the first time ever in the brand's history, two restaurants are opening on July 14th - one in Appleton, Wisconsin and one in Little Rock, Arkansas - both outside of the brand's home state. The team also inked five new franchise deals, representing a cumulative 54 restaurants to be developed in the coming years.
"The team has been busy," said Chief Operating Officer Samir Wattar. "We've opened nearly two restaurants per month all year, which is incredible, and we have another 14 under construction right now. We are almost fully sold out in Texas at this point, but we're also expanding in Wisconsin, Arkansas and Ohio, expanding our reach even further."
As it grows, Layne's continues to attract franchisees from other major brands like Wendy's, Arby's and Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux.
"We continue to be incredibly selective with our franchisees," said CEO Garrett Reed. "We're catching investors' eyes, and we're rising to the top as a prime option for franchisees whose markets are already saturated with other major players."
The eagerness of these franchisees to invest in the Layne's model is a great validator, and the brand's strength is only further confirmed by its existing franchisees' satisfaction and its continued financial performance. Layne's restaurants consistently achieve six-figure openings, its average unit volume is steadily climbing since it launched its franchise opportunities, and Wattar said the brand is quickly approaching million-dollar sales weeks.
"The exciting part of all of this growth, for me, is that most of the restaurants opening this year are from existing franchisees," Wattar said. "Our first franchisee opened his first Layne's in 2021, and he will have 10 open by the end of the year. Our franchisee in East Texas opened his first restaurant early this year, he'll open another in August, and he has three more in development. This is validation, to me, that we're on to something. If our franchisees weren't doing well and happy about their investments, they wouldn't be growing so quickly."
Layne's momentum in the first half of the year is undeniable, with record-breaking growth setting the stage for an even stronger end to 2025. Now, having essentially sold out the majority of its home state of Texas, Layne's is on track to execute agreements in more key markets, including new states, paving the way to cross the 80-restaurant mark by the end of 2026.
"We've shown that our brand has incredible appeal for both guests and strong operators," Reed said. "We're growing, but the deeper story is that we're building a national brand with qualified, passionate partners, and I could not be more proud of where Layne's is headed."
ABOUT LAYNE'S CHICKEN FINGERS
Founded in 1994 in College Station, the original location became a Texas A&M legend known for its small-town charm, friendly service, iconic chicken fingers and secret sauce. While opening corporate locations across the Dallas-Fort Worth area, the leadership team focused on fine tuning its operations and starting to franchise.
Franchise opportunities range from $451,500 to $1,050,000 with different buildout options available. Learn more about franchising here: https://layneschickenfranchising.com/
Media Contact
Lauren Turner, Mainland, 3125263996, [email protected], www.hellomainland.com
SOURCE Layne’s Chicken Fingers
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