11 www.taipanonline.com NOVEMBER 2004        In today’s missive, I’d like to do
something I don’t normally do.
That is, I’d like to delve briefly into
my personal life.        You see, every fall Sunday, I
have a tradition of getting hot
wings plus whatever beer is on
special at the quickie mart and
watching the Chicago Bears lose a
football game. But this Sunday, I
was forced out of my schedule due
to in-law obligations.        No sweat, I told myself, I’d simply pick up the
wings the first free night I could, which in this case
was the following Tuesday. What’s more, I figured I
wouldn’t have to fight the crowds that gather on
Sunday to watch football. All in all, not a bad com-
promise. Or so I thought.        As I pulled into my neighborhood’s newly-con-
structed Buffalo Wild Wings, I was shocked to find
a jam-packed parking lot and a sign boasting “35-
cent wings.”        “Sweet,” I thought to myself. “I’ll get dinner
tonight on the cheap.” After all, the thought of 35-
cent wings sets off visions of an incredible bargain.
But upon further examination, I’ve discovered that
35-cent wings are, without question, the best mar-
keting gimmick in the world. Allow me to reach into
my pocket and pull out my crumpled-up receipt to
back up this claim.        Here’s my dinner tally from last night, and more
importantly, why you should care about this ridicu-
lous tale of words and wings.        On a regular night, 18 wings costs US$9.99.
That’s US$0.55 each.        On this night, I ordered 18 wings (9 wild hot, 9
spicy garlic) for a pre-tax total of US$6.30. But, throw
in an order of celery, an order of blue cheese, and an
order of ranch, and the total bill came to US$9.35.        As I handed over the cash among a packed
house of families and sports fans, I thought to
myself just how brilliant the 35-cent wing night is.
What I really saved myself was 65 cents. But this
65-cent savings absolutely packs the house on a
standard Tuesday night. I simply had to dig further.
Lo and behold, Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD:NAS- DAQ) is a publicly traded company with some seri-
ous upside momentum. Launched as an IPO in
November of 2003, BWLD has gained 38%. And
looking forward, the gains should continue. This ain’t Hooters        Minneapolis-based Buffalo Wild Wings has suc-
cessfully launched a restaurant franchise that
appeals to all demographic markets. Whether it’s a
family of five (kids aged 2 to 15), a group of college
students sweet-talking the bartender, or a married
couple with no kids (like me and my wife), BWLD’s
inviting neighborhood atmosphere creates a place
where everyone feels comfortable spending their
money.        Roughly 30% of Buffalo Wild Wings’ sales come
from wings. Beer contributes another 30%. The
remaining 40% comes from their other menu items
like chicken legs, white-meat boneless “wings” and
a standard roster of wraps, salads and burgers.        Right now, BWLD has 256 restaurants in 29
states that generate 12-month sales of US$137 mil-
lion. Of those restaurants, 88 are owned and oper-
ated by Buffalo Wild Wings. The rest are fran-
chised. (Franchisees pay US$40,000 to open a
restaurant, then an ongoing 5% of sales and 3% in
advertising costs.)        Their closest rival, Hooters, currently boasts 329
locations and annual sales of US$670 million. Using
Hooters’ sales numbers as a gauge, you’ll notice
that BWLD has plenty of room for expansion, both
in sales and in new restaurant openings. • Hooters’ 329 restaurants generate US$670 million in sales - equating to US$2.04 million
per restaurant. In order to devote more of our limited print space to bring- ing you profitable news and information, we are moving the Taipan classified ads to our website, www.taipanonline.com. If you are interested in advertising with us, please email                Sara Nunnally at
snunnally@TaipanGroup.com. Taipan'sClassifieds Next page… The best marketing gimmick in the world And how it’ll make you 45% in 6 months Bryan Bottarelli