![]() At the end of the year, 35 new locations were opened. ![]() Smith was promoted to president and CEO in August 1996, while Disbrow became chairman of the board. At that time, there were 48 locations with 12 corporate owned. Existing franchisees were encouraged to add more locations while more corporate locations were planned. The company looked closer at new franchisees' qualifications. This was a shift in strategy from a college sports-bar to casual dining. Įxpecting more growth in 1995, BW3 designed a new prototype free-standing outlet with clear separation between the bar and dining areas and seating 190 in a 5,000- to 7,500-square-foot space. During 1995, the company did $12 million in revenue with a loss of $1.6 million. Smith was unable to determine the firm's net income/loss prior to 1995. Smith had to deal with issues with lenders and the Internal Revenue Service and a potential bankruptcy as a part of overhauling its finances. In order to get her full-time, the company moved its headquarters to the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area where Smith wished to stay. In late 1994, Disbrow hired a part-time chief financial officer, Sally Smith, who was employed at his new father-in-law's business. By 1993, eight more locations were added, primarily in Ohio. The company's headquarters was set up in 1992 in Cincinnati. Its bottled wing sauces were then manufactured by Wilsey, Inc. The original franchise fee was $15,000 to $20,000 plus a percentage of sales. The company began to franchise in 1992 by working with Francorp, a Chicago-based law firm. The Colorado location was selected as they skied there. The restaurant expanded into a chain over the next decade as it added six additional locations in Ohio, Indiana, and Steamboat Springs, Colorado. None had any restaurant experience and thus ran all aspects of the business, including its finances, haphazardly. The pair brought on an additional partner, Mark Lutz, within six months after opening. Weck was an original part of the name, as beyond the wings and its dozen sauces, the restaurant served beef on weck. For the first location, they selected a location near Ohio State University, Columbus. Failing to find any restaurant serving them, they decided to open their own restaurant serving wings. After Disbrow had finished judging an amateur figure skating competition at Kent State University, the pair met up to get some Buffalo-style chicken wings to eat. Lowery's parents had become Disbrow's guardians as they were his ice skating coaches. Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck was founded in 1982 by Jim Disbrow and Scott Lowery.
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