After Hurricane Katrina: A Conversation with Todd Graves of Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers

Executive Summary Although Todd Graves and his colleague, Craig Silvey, started Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers in 1996 in Baton Rouge, LA, the idea for the business had been on Todd Graves's mind for many years. While attending the University of Georgia, Todd first came up with the idea for a chicken fingers only restaurant. For many years, Todd had enjoyed chicken fingers, which are a southern delicacy consisting of the tenderloin of the chicken. Chicken fingers should not be confused with slices of chicken breast or re-constituted chicken strips. Chicken fingers have been served in the Deep South states of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana for many years, but not as the only item on the menu. During his college days, Todd learned how to cook chicken fingers and developed a wonderful sauce to complement the taste. Todd returned to his hometown of Baton Rouge and went to work on his restaurant dream. Craig Silvey presented the idea to an entrepreneurship class at Louisiana State University, but the professor disliked the idea of a chicken fingers only restaurant and gave the project a very low C in his class. Undaunted, Todd and Craig persisted with the dream. They had a plan, but they needed money to bring the idea to fruition. The two entrepreneurs approached many banks and financial institutions in Louisiana, looking for a loan to begin their company. However, the banks refused to loan money to the young and inexperienced entrepreneurs for the chicken fingers only concept. To accumulate some cash, Todd took a risky job in Los Angeles working as a boilermaker doing turn around work. This brought in some money, but more was needed. So, acting on a tip from a friend, Todd and Craig journeyed to Alaska to engage in the very dangerous business of fishing for sock-eyed salmon in the frigid and choppy coastal waters there. Because the rewards are so great for gathering loads of sockeyed salmon, boat captains fish without much regard for the safety of their competitors or their crew. Todd and Craig survived this experience and brought home some money to start their business. After obtaining a location for the first restaurant, a former bike shop just down the street from the entrance gates to Louisiana State University, the young men worked hard to remodel the site. Todd decided that the name of the company should be Sock-eyes Chicken Fingers, but at the last minute friends convinced him to change the name to Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers in honor of Todd's loyal yellow Labrador Retriever, Raising Cane. The dog followed Todd to work every day and became a favorite at the restaurant. Cane became the mascot of the company and served in advertising Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers for many years. Today, his successor, Raising Cane II, has assumed this position in the company. The streamlined menu of chicken fingers, Cane's sauce, French fries, Texas toast, coleslaw and beverages (soft drinks, iced tea, water and sometimes lemonade) has been a great success. The single-minded determination, characterized by Raising Cane's motto of One Love has continued to work well. The beloved chicken fingers served fresh, never frozen and the top management's passionate desire to create a cool place for young adults to work have fueled the success of Raising Cane's. In keeping with Louisiana Mardi Gras tradition, employees are called crew members and are trained to treat customers politely in a party-like atmosphere. With its college town origins, Raising Cane's specializes in late night dining, staying open until 3AM in some locations. The company grew rapidly in Baton Rouge then spread quickly across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. By the summer of 2005, Raising Canes operated 28 stores in the coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi, plus another four stores outside this area. The following interview focuses on the response of Raising Cane's top management team to the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina. …

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