Why These Three Franchisees Continue to Invest in Wings
and Rings
For franchise owners including David Boulier, Mike Weyer, and Al Hauck, the
benefits of having a lively atmosphere and profitable business keep them
engaged and growing with the brand.
Wings and Rings is having a big year. Not only has the brand expanded its
internal leadership team with several recent hires but the brand has
successfully continued to expand despite a difficult economy. Much of that
growth and success, it turns out, is a product of happy franchisees and their
drive to grow with the brand.
David Boulier is one franchisee who has been with Wings and Rings for ten
years and consistently grown his business in Florida. Boulier was initially
attracted to the brand because of the low-cost investment; and after attending
discovery day with the brand, he was completely sold. The great food and
lively atmosphere were enough to initiate the investment in his first location.
Now, the entrepreneur owns three thriving locations in North Port, Fort Myers,
and Port Charlotte, Florida. His restaurants have done incredibly well and
have been a driving force for the brand’s growth and success.
“I opened up my first location with only $900 in my pocket,” said Boulier. “After
our first location became successful so quickly, I knew we had to expand. We
simultaneously opened two new locations and have really been able to find
success with the Wings and Rings business model.”
Multi-unit franchisee Mike Weyer is another success story of consistent
growth with the brand. The Indiana entrepreneur was inspired to open his own
Wings and Rings after visiting the Richmond location in 2007. At the time, he
was a long-term and active football, soccer, and baseball coach in his
community. When his Little League team made it to the State Championships,
the team and their families visited Wings and Rings every day during the
tournament because they loved the atmosphere so much. The lively ambience
and delicious food left a lasting impression on Weyer; so much so that he
brought the brand to his hometown of Jasper in 2008. He has subsequently
opened two additional locations in the region.
“In our smaller markets, we feel like 90—95 percent of our customers are
repeat customers. That ingrains in us that we have to be perfect all of the
time,” said Weyer. “You don’t have the margin of error that you might have in
a larger market. We’ve had to step our game up in the last few months in both
locations to double down to make sure that we’re treating our customers the
best that we can because we’ve run into considerably more competition in
both Bedford and Jasper.”
Weyer had already acquired a vast amount of experience in running a
business prior to opening his first Wings and Rings restaurant. He worked as
an insurance broker and then sales manager at Prudential before opening his
own insurance agency in 1995, followed by another commercial real estate
firm two years later. Weyer credits his partner, Ann Bennett, for the success
they’ve enjoyed nearly a decade after their first opening, who actually started
as a general manager in Jasper and was later given the opportunity to invest
in ownership. The pair was even once recognized as Wings and Rings
Franchisee of the Year during the brand’s annual conference.
“Ann takes care of everything inside the restaurant,” said Weyer. “Without her
I would never have gotten in the business. She had a small restaurant of her
own prior to Wings and Rings and really understands the customer service
piece of the puzzle. I know the real estate side and the financial side, but
she’s the one who makes it workday in and day out.”
Al Hauck, another multi-unit owner who is out of North Dakota, shared similar
sentiments about the brand. Owner of Wings and Rings locations in Bismarck,
Minot, and Fargo, Hauck has seen a significant amount of growth with the
brand in a 10-year span. Having worked in the auto industry for 25 years,
Hauck made the shift when he realized he couldn’t afford an auto dealership
of his own. After deciding to franchise with Wings and Rings as his next
business venture, the success of his location really took off.
“We don’t go out to eat a lot, but if we do, this is what we’re looking for,” said
Hauck. “I love sports, my wife loves sports, and our kids are all into sports. We
found there weren’t a lot of sports restaurants in the area. There were a lot of
sports bars, but no place to take a family. That’s when we knew the brand was
a good fit — when we realized this would be an establishment, we would bring
our own family to.”
