Can Bojangles be a national brand? CEO talks chicken chain’s future on podcast

Bojangles isn’t chicken about saying where the iconic Charlotte-based restaurant chain is headed with “unprecedented growth” despite fierce competition.

”We’re constantly looking at ways to create a new path for growth,” Bojangles CEO Jose Armario told Jonathan Maze last week on Restaurant Business’ podcast A Deeper Dive.

While Bojangles has seen competition on its home turf from newcomers like Slim Chickens and Dave’s Hot Chicken, Harold’s Chicken & Ice Bar, and the formidable Chick-fil-A, it, too, has been spreading its wings.

Bojangles recently opened its 800th restaurant in Monroe, Louisiana, with more stores under construction in Texas, Ohio and Florida.

“Bojangles has 132 commitments to grow in the coming years,” Armario said.

It’s been a tough three years, Armario said noting the pandemic, labor and inflation. “It really helps you figure out what you need to work on and what you need to get better at,” he said.

Still, Bojangles’ sales grew last year to $1.6 billion total systemwide, Armario said, an almost 9% increase compared to the year before. About 35% of Bojangles’ stores are company-owned, but the majority, 65%, are franchised.

Here are five takeaways from Armario’s conversation:

Bojangles wants to be a national brand

Founded in 1977 in Charlotte, Bojangles primarily has been a Southern brand. The privately-held company was acquired by The Jordan Company and Durational Capital Management in 2019.

When Armario took the reins that year, he thought, “Why are we not a national brand?”

Over the past few years, Bojangles expanded into new territories including Arkansas, Illinois, New Jersey and Texas. Bojangles is now in 14 states.

This year, Bojangles also moved into a new market — hard sweet tea in collaboration with Boone’s Appalachian Mountain Brewery. “Who does tea better than Bojangles?” Armario said. “We’ll reach more customers and remind them Bojangles is here for all occasions.”

The alcoholic tea is not available in restaurants but is rolling out starting March 13 at grocery and convenience stores. Bojangles hard sweet tea is available in 12-packs, 12-ounce cans and individual 16-ounce cans, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.

Pandemic pushed a positive path

Although Bojangles had planned to launch an app and delivery service, the pandemic made it happen quickly.

Bojangles began delivery in April 2020 at the start of the pandemic.

Going digital also provides a better idea of customers — where they are, when they’re near a store and how they’re spending their money.

“We didn’t do delivery. We didn’t have an app. It was sort of a survival thing in 2020,” Armario said.

The company also wanted to improve drive-thru service accuracy and efficiency. “Those are pretty good strategies in the middle of a pandemic,” he said. “Our transactions are up every month.”

New store menu

Bojangles is making menu changes at its new stores in Memphis, Tennessee; Monroe, Louisiana; and Sanford, Florida, Armario said.

The idea is to start with a simple menu and focus on the customer experience. About 40% of Bojangles’ daily sales are made by 11 a.m., with the rest at lunch and dinner times, Armario said.

The lunch and dinner menu focuses on hand-breaded chicken sandwich and hand-breaded tenders.

Customers have been interested in boneless chicken for several years now, he said.

“We’re not doing the bone in chicken in those markets,” Armario said. “We’re known for fried chicken but doing a trial.”

Milkshakes also have been introduced in those markets.

New store look

Bojangles’ stores have a new look, too, with its redesign called “the Genesis.”

The new store design features updated interiors and exteriors, plus an outdoor dining area, according to Bojangles. The new look includes digital menu boards and updated colors on the building exterior, awnings and signs, plus squared-off arched parapets.

“It is a fresh, beautiful new restaurant that screams ‘Come and try me, we’re from the South, and you’re gonna love our food and our hospitality,’ ” Armario said.

And the “Biscuit Theatre” is the focal point, providing a window view into watching the master biscuit makers at work. It’s a 49-step process to make Bojangles biscuits, which are made every 20 minutes.

“If you’re proud of your food, you shouldn’t be afraid to show how you’re making it,” Armario said. “We kind of have a bakery in our restaurants.”

Biscuits are serious business at Bojangles, Armario told Maze. Master biscuit makers go through an intense training and certification process.

“You’re in the Southeast and biscuits are a religion down there,” Maze said.

Don’t call it fast-food

Armario said Bojangles provides a casual, full dining experience in a convenient setting.

About 40% of Bojangles’ daily sales are made by 11 a.m., with the rest at lunch and dinner times, he said.

“Our tea is steeped the old-fashioned way. We don’t have a microwave in the kitchen,” Armario said. “Everything we do is scratch-made and hand-breaded.

“Bojangles is not fast-food, we’re good food fast.”

This story was originally published March 7, 2023 at 12:57 PM with the headline "Can Bojangles be a national brand? CEO talks chicken chain’s future on podcast."