Wienerschnitzel, a fast-food chain that specializes in hot dogs, is hoping to find a franchisee that will allow the company to expand into Springfield and throughout central Illinois.
The only Wienerschnitzel restaurant in the state is in Champaign, so Ted Milburn, director of U.S. franchise development for the company, said there is plenty of room for growth.
“We’ve long believed, based on the success of our store in Champaign, that there’s a lot more opportunity in the state,” he said.
The company was founded in 1961 by a former Taco Bell employee, John Galardi, and started franchising a few years later. Milburn said there are now 336 locations nationwide, and the Champaign store has been open since 1968.
“We’ve been a family-run business since day one, and we’re still run by the same founding family,” Milburn said. “We have a unique menu offering; different than a lot of what’s out there. We really fit a very good niche for Anytown USA that has an oversaturation of burgers, chicken, tacos and pizza.”
The vast majority of Wienerschnitzel restaurants also offer Tastee-Freez ice cream, another of the company’s product lines.
“It’s a unique brand with a very good business model,” Milburn said. “You can run a store with four people and a manager.”
Wienerschnitzel stores range from new construction to conversions of existing buildings. Restaurants in the 850 square foot range focus on walk up and drive through traffic, while slightly larger restaurants have 1,400 square feet that can accommodate inside seating, Milburn said. All of the locations have a drive-through window.
“The cost to develop is really important, and we want to keep costs down,” Milburn said. “We can really find some unique parcels of real estate (because of the smaller size).”
Milburn said there are currently new locations in the works for Omaha, Nebraska; Nashville, Tennessee, and in Arkansas. The company is also seeking new franchisees to expand in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouria and Iowa, in addition to downstate Illinois.
“We’re hoping to find well-qualified people who are running other brands and looking to diversify,” Milburn said, noting that franchisees do not necessarily need food service experience. “Some of our best franchisees did not have a restaurant background, but they had good business acumen.”
