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Entrepreneur Files
Pluckers Wing Factory and Grill
UT Connection: Mark Greenberg, Advertising 95, David Paul, Communications 95, and Sean Greenberg, BBA 99
Location: Austin
Not every entrepreneur has a recipe for success, but three Texas Exes have several, and if all goes according to the menu, people may soon be able to give their recipes a taste in cities across Texas and Louisiana.
Mark Greenberg (Advertising 95) and David Paul (Communications 95) opened their first Pluckers restaurant on West Campus in Austin in 1996, the year after they graduated from UT. The laid-back eatery specializing in chicken wings, generous portions, and unusual appetizers like fried pickles was an immediate hit with college students and young families. Students appreciated the late-night delivery schedule and the humorous approach (“If you don’t like our wings,” one sign says, “We’ll give you the bird”). Most of all they liked the food – some of the largest wings in town, served up with spicy homemade sauces and a full platter of comfort-style sandwiches and side dishes.
The concept was simple: great food and service at value pricing. Add a business student to the mix – Mark’s younger brother Sean Greenberg (BBA 99) – and the idea for a franchise was born.
Today, Paul and the brothers Greenberg are actively marketing franchising opportunities for what they hope will become a chain in Texas, Louisiana, and beyond. The first franchise opened in December of 2001 in McAllen, and the team has plans for seven more locations in the Rio Grande Valley, Dallas, and Baton Rouge.
The trio is not short on ambition. “We want to revolutionize the idea of delivery,” says Sean. “There are lots of delivery restaurants in America right now,” adds Paul, “but there are none that deliver with the same level of quality that they offer in-house,” which is a primary goal for Pluckers.
The “Pluckers Wing Factory & Grill” franchise concept was worked out with the aid of a former lawyer for Wendy’s Dave Thomas. The founders were careful, however, to keep much of their own personality in the plan. Even the franchise brochure reveals an edgy, comic attitude, depicting cartoon chickens drinking beer while running a factory that produces their tasty wings.
Hallmarks of the Austin location will carry forward into the franchises, such as the “Hall of Flame,” a shrine to customers who can eat the greatest number of spicy chicken wings in one sitting. If the new locations replicate the success of the Austin original, which will gross $1.8 million this year, Pluckers could eventually clip the wings of several competitors.
One question will be whether the irreverent, college-age atmosphere will work beyond the Austin environment. When they started out, notes Mark Greenberg, “We were the market, so we looked at what we wanted in a restaurant and then developed it.” Notably, the team hopes to make two of its moves into university settings, in Baton Rouge and near SMU in Dallas.
What’s their recipe for success? According to the franchise brochure, “Take 1 amazing restaurant concept serving the highest quality American fare, add value pricing and generous portions. Blend in 1 fun casual atmosphere …. Add generous measures of hard work, attention to detail and the willingness to follow the MD Pluckers Wing Factory & Grill system. Let the flavors simmer, and watch the profits grow.”
The wings aren’t bad either, and you have to try the fried pickle.
For more information visit www.pluckers.net.
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