LAWTON—Within a few months, a Slim Chickens franchise will open in Lawton.
That’s the word coming from franchise owner Colt Harmon, who has a multi-franchise company with fast-food brands in nearby states.
“Lawton really jumped off the map to us. We want it to be a bang,” Harmon said. “It has a great small town feel and it’s community based. We like the diversity of Lawton and it’s a growing area. Slim Chickens is a growing segment of the fast-casual restaurant industry and it goes with the territory in and around Lawton.”
Lawton’s Slim Chickens restaurant will be the first under Harmon’s ownership. He plans to open others in Ada, Ardmore, Muskogee and Wichita Falls, Texas. The Slim Chickens company has eight other franchises in Oklahoma.
Born and raised in Arkansas, Harmon said he has been familiar with the Arkansas-based company since it began Feb. 17, 2003, with the first restaurant which opened in Fayetteville, Ark.
“As I got to going in the franchise world, I knew I wanted a Slim Chickens,” Harmon said. “This one will be a 2,800 square-foot prototype and will be the biggest and newest Slim Chickens has to offer.”
Crews began construction two weeks ago on the restaurant located at 6731 NW Cache Road. Harmon said he’s hopeful the franchise will open by early to mid-summer.
“In a perfect world, I’d like to be open by June or July,” he said. “We want people to see that Slim Chickens offers Southern-style comfort food and great hospitality. You can’t match the taste and atmosphere with Slim’s. We have a far superior product than any chicken restaurant out there.”
Harmon is the president and CEO of HnB Chicken LLC, which will own the Lawton franchise. Manny Rosas and Marco Rosas will be the restaurant’s managing partners.
“We are super excited,” Harmon said. “We have big expectations for this location. We want to break the record for opening-day sales for the entire Slim Chickens system.”
Harmon noted the land and building for the Slim Chickens restaurant will be owned by Lawton Chicken, LLC.