FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Over the last ten years, Northwest Arkansas has certainly become an area for booming businesses and growth, and Slim Chickens co-founders Greg Smart and Tom Gordon would certainly agree.
"People here feel like they've got a chance, and we certainly did 20 years ago," Gordon said. "And it turned out to be a great move for us and a great place for us to start."
Smart and Gordon said they never imagined such success when they opened their first store on College Avenue in Fayetteville.
"We were such young guys," Gordon said. "I don't know if we could have imagined much of anything back then other than trying to sell food out of our little restaurant."
Now with about 8,000 employees and 257 locations, they say their focus is still quality over quantity.
"We just focused on fresh chicken, hand-breaded, quality service, quality products, and we've stayed true to that throughout 20-plus years," Smart said.
The duo has plans for a brand new headquarters location across the street from their previous, much smaller office.
"We just outgrew it," Gordon said. "And it's a testament to the growth that we've had and the great fortune that we've been able to create with our people and the staffing that we have to have to support the franchisees."
And through all of that progress, they say the greatest feeling is helping others.
"I'm very proud that we have been able to give jobs, careers, a lot of first starts, fresh starts, and a lot of executive high-level jobs to people based right here in Northwest Arkansas," Gordon said.
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