Coming in late on discussion, but had an immediate family member with an opportunity at a Chic-Fil-A franchise, but ultimately passed. Didn't feel like it'd be a good fit based on their franchise structure (it's basically a 50/50 revenue split with corporate) and the pillars of what they base their business on.
It's obviously an extremely religious company....which, good for them, it's a core of who they are. When interviewing potential franchise owners, they send a corporate team for a multiple day interview. It's not a formal interview in the sense where they come and sit you down and ask questions. They ask you to plan out 3-5 days, and show them how you spend your week. If meetings at your church aren't a part of that interview process, it's almost like a red flag for them. The love active members of churches and it in turn, becomes the core of that singular franchise location.
A majority of the Chic-Fil-A's you will eat at, whether you realize it or not, are essentially a church congregation. And it works exceptionally well, because the employees are held to exceptionally high standards compared to your average fast food restaurant.
The average employee, is a high school kid who belongs to the same church as the franchise owner, and if said high school employee is doing a terrible job.....it's not little Johnny that is getting the phone call. It's little Johny's mom or dad at the church getting the message on Sunday morning, about how their child is under-performing.
In many ways, the success of the individual franchise, is a statement of success for the church the franchise owner belongs too. But it works very well, because staff can't just leave work at the restaurant...it carries over into their social/private lives. Their isn't a single other food franchise that copies this formula, and it has proven to be exceptionally successful.
It changes the perception of the service you're receiving at a Chic-Fil-A when you start from the basis that 75% of the employees are all members of the same church and their performance at work, translates to perception within the church, and reports back to peers/family members/church leadership.
