A Springfield business owner and entrepreneur has signed a franchise agreement to bring Wing It On! to the capital city.
Founded in 2011, Wing It On! serves buffalo-style wings, tenders and chicken sandwiches with 24 signature flavors, both sauces and rubs.
“I love chicken wings,” said Billy Wilder, the Springfield franchisee, who also owns Gracie Barra Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. “There’s a wing place next to my jiu jitsu academy, and I started paying attention to them.”
Wilder said when he saw the constant foot traffic coming and going from the wing restaurant in the shopping center, he started researching chicken franchises.
“I like to be healthy; I like my workouts,” he said. “I wanted a better quality – no GMOs, no hormones, free-range chickens. When my wife and I go to the grocery store, we look for things that don’t have hormones and antibiotics in them.”
Wilder said he was impressed by the chicken used by Wing It On!, particularly since he felt the price point was competitive with other chicken restaurants in the market.
“This is food I would feel OK with my kids eating,” he said.
Wilder, who is originally from Ohio, said he joined the U.S. Marines right out of high school. When he left active duty, he enrolled at Nebraska University and started working in insurance following graduation. Wilder said he moved to Springfield while working in regional management for a Fortune 500 insurance company but now has a full-time job with the state of Illinois.
Wilder said he has submitted a letter of intent to lease a space and hopes to have the Springfield location by this fall. He did not want to disclose the specific location since the lease is not finalized.
Wilder is working with Craveworthy, a company representing 15 different restaurant brands. Craveworthy’s portfolio includes legacy brands such as Flat Top Grill, Ghengis Grill and BD’s Mongolian Grill as well as emerging brands that include Dirty Dough, Krafted Burger Bar + Tap and Wing It On.
A corporate-owned Wing It On! location opened in Lombard last July, and Craveworthy has announced two newly signed franchise agreements. In addition to Springfield, a different franchisee is planning to open a location in Carol Stream later this year.
“Illinois has quickly become a contender in our growth strategy as we expand across the Midwest,” said Gregg Majewski, founder and CEO of Craveworthy Brands. “With wing demand soaring, these new agreements are a testament to the strength of Wing It On!’s franchise business model.”
