The selections of the Kansas City area and Bentonville were strategic and fortuitous. “We want our franchisees to be just as successful as have been.” “The first 10 or so franchisees are the make or break,” he says. In Sundy’s view, a successful franchisee is the absolute best marketing the brand can have. Hence, the owners have made significant investments in back-office infrastructure, including marketing, legal and accounting services as well as in creating a director of operations position.

“It’s important to see how fast we can go and support our franchisees and provide the same product we put a lot of passion and pride into making.” “It’s the first time in my life that I don’t have 100 different things going,” Sundy says. Their goal? Two franchises the first year, four the second and eight the third. Previously involved in a handful of restaurant and bar concepts, Sundy now has a stake only in Big Whiskey’s (along with Heslin, Jamie Clark, Randy Gildehaus and Austin Herschend) and is committed to its growth. With three locations in Springfield and one each in Branson and Ozark, the casual dining chain has established a favorable reputation, appealing to college students, game day crowds and families alike.Īnd early this year, that reputation is reaching a couple of new area codes with the first planned Big Whiskey’s franchise locations in Lee’s Summit near Kansas City and Bentonville, Arkansas.įounder and co-owner Paul Sundy, who opened the original Big Whiskey’s with Michael Heslin in downtown Springfield in July 2006, says the business took a deliberate approach to its decision to franchise. A decade into its existence, Big Whiskey’s American Restaurant & Bar is a well-known entity in 417-land.

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