In 1981 James Disbrow founded Buffalo Wild Wings with his friend Scott Lowery.  This all started because they went looking for a place that served authentic Buffalo-style chicken wings in Kent, Ohio.  When they could not find one they decided they would open their own restaurant and they did so in Westerville, Ohio a year later.  They original name was Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck or BW3 for short.  As of December 27, 2009 the franchise had 652 locations with 232 of them directly owned by the company.  The original name of BW3 was intentionally similar to the TV show called TW3 or That Was The Week That Was because James Disbrow was a huge fan of the show.  The name was later changed to Buffalo Wild Wings, but many patrons still call it BW3′s.  In 2010 the company expanded into Canada and as of February 2011 the company had reported over $380 million in total assets.

Even though many would think the specialty of Buffalo Wild Wings is wings, which it is to some degree, the real star of the restaurant is the 14 signature sauces and the atmosphere.  They have more televisions than most other sports bars, usually more than 15 beers on tap, and they always have new wing sauces coming out as well.  Their slogan is “Wings, Beer, Sports”, which is what they are all about.  They also offer many other items on the menu like Flatbreads, Salads, Hamburgers, Ribs, Wraps, and many other sandwiches.  Those that do not like their wings can certainly find another item that they will be satisfied with since they use their signatures sauces with much more than their wings.

Buffalo Wild Wings is one of the most profitable restaurant franchises that an entrepreneur can invest in.  It is also one of the larger investments a franchisee will have to make.  You must have a minimum of $750,000 in liquid assets per restaurant and at least a $1.5 million net worth for each restaurant as well.  You have to commit to two restaurants in the territory you choose, which means you have to have $1.5 million in liquid assets and a net worth of at least $3 million to get started.  The operator must be an equity partner of at least 5% and at least 20% of every stores start-up costs must be liquid assets as well.