Company: Wingstop
Entered by: S. Bell Public Relations
Company Description: Wingstop Restaurants Inc. offers restaurants with a nostalgic, aviation-themed atmosphere where the sole focus is on chicken wings. Introduced in 1989, the company currently has more than 450 restaurants open or under development in 26 states. Wingstop was chosen Wing King at the 2006 National Buffalo Wing Festival and Favorite Restaurant at the 2005 festival.
Nomination Category: Company, Office & Product Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Most Innovative Company

Nomination Title: Wingstop

1. Tell the story about what this nominated company achieved in the past year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Since its inception, Wingstop has been a leading innovator for the fast casual
restaurant industry. The company brought the chicken wing – considered by
many to be a throw-away item- to the center of the plate. In 2006, the
company continued to set industry standard with the introduction of new
products and programs that appeal to a wider audience while increasing average
ticket sales.

Last year, Wingstop introduced boneless chicken wings to the marketplace,
making the concept more appealing to women and children and securing
Wingstop’s place as a family-friendly restaurant. Extensive research,
including a series of focus group discussions, concluded that women are not
preferential to meat on a bone. As a result, the boneless concept was
developed, launched and has not only increased the number of female customers,
and bonelesss is now approximately 15% of overall sales.

When a restaurant offers a single menu item, it can be a challenge to develop
new and exciting ways to package that item as a bundle for consumers. 
Wingstop successfully tackled that challenge in 2006 with the development and
launch of innovative combination packages for customers to enjoy in the
restaurant or at home. The concept proved to be a success, as the average
ticket increased and the company estimates that 50 percent of its business now
comes from the creative combos.

In 2006, Wingstop took technology to a new level when it launched an online
ordering pilot program. Always the innovator, Wingstop took a concept that has
been confined to the pizza delivery market and introduced it as a convenient
way for its own dine-in and carry-out customers to bypass the long lines and
telephone busy signals, especially during high-volume periods such as Friday
and Saturday nights. Allowing customers to order online is not only a
convenience to the customer, but also ensures that suggestive selling is
happening with each customer in a consistent manner. This consistent
suggestive selling has increased the average customer ticket as well as
customer frequency. The pilot program showed that 30 percent of the online
orders coming from repeat guests. Online orders are more than double the
average check; they’re approximately $23.00 avg. check vs. $12.

By examining the industry through the eyes of the customer and then providing
products that fit those needs and building upon existing technology by
adapting it, Wingstop has placed itself among the top business innovators.

2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

http://www.nrn.com/story.cfm?ID=577950624&SEC=Daily%20Specials

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=danews.story&STORY=/www/s
tory/01-24-2006/0004266542&EDATE=TUE+Jan+24+2006,+10:49+AM

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/poultrynews/8902/wingstop-launches-new-boneless
-wings-nationally

http://www.franchisewire.com/article.php?id=515

http://www.fesmag.com/archives/2005/12a/wingstop.asp

http://media.www.daily49er.com/media/storage/paper1042/news/2006/10/24/Di
versions/Wingstop.Serves.Up.Wings.To.Stop.For-2384526.shtml?norewrite200
611100123&sourcedomain=www.daily49er.com

www.wingstop.com/docs/news/bonelessmoves.pdf

www.wingstop.com/docs/news/onlineordering.pdf -

http://ca.biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070116/datu020.html?.v=85

http://www.meatanddeliretailer.com/viewprnews.php?nid=11128

3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader of this nominated company:

Wingstop Restaurants Inc. offers restaurants with a nostalgic, aviation-themed
atmosphere where the sole focus is on chicken wings. Introduced in 1989, the
company currently has more than 450 restaurants open or under development in
26 states. Wingstop was chosen Wing King at the 2006 National Buffalo Wing
Festival and Favorite Restaurant at the 2005 festival. The company was ranked
No. 13 in Restaurant Business’ Top 50 Growth Chains and was ranked as the No.
1 chicken wing chain by Entrepreneur magazine. Troy Aikman, three-time Super
Bowl champion and Hall of Fame quarterback, serves as the chain’s national
spokesman.