Part-time greeter and marketer and full-time helpmate, silver-haired Waylon Kyle stood next to a black-and-white cow, doling out red balloons and hearty helpings of goodwill, while his wife, Freda Kyle, flitted between filling lemonade orders and keeping a watchful eye on her employees.
The Kyles and their six children are an example of what happens when corporate philosophy becomes a family commitment, forging a successful business model and multi-generational bond.
Freda Kyle is the franchise operator of Columbus’ newly-opened Chick-fil-A, which debuted in its current location off 18th Avenue North Jan. 19. Of her six children, four have their own Chick-fil-A stores, and another got her start as an employee and ended up marrying her fellow colleague and boss’s son, who now works at the corporate office.
“When we have family get-togethers, you better be prepared to talk Chick-fil-A,” quipped Waylon Kyle.
None of them sought a future in the chicken business, but a company-wide value system which mirrored their own ultimately captured their loyalty.
Bible-based business model
Raising six children on an insurance salesman’s salary didn’t allow for a lot of eating out, Waylon Kyle recalled, but the family was well-aware of Chick-fil-A’s reputation as a Christian-owned, Christian-operated and Christian-friendly company.
The Kyle’s oldest daughter, Amanda Kyle Wesson, began the family affair when she announced she wanted to get a job at McDonald’s. They were living in Decatur, Ala., at the time, and her parents told her to apply to Chick-fil-A instead because their stores were closed on Sundays, allowing her to attend church.
Before long, Freda Kyle — who had been a stay-at-home mother — decided she wanted to work for the company. Within six months, she had a store of her own in Huntsville, Ala.
Heath Kyle, 36, operates a Chick-fil-A restaurant in Pell City, Ala. Matthew Kyle, 34, has a restaurant in Athens, Ala. Heather Kyle Adams, 32, has a restaurant in Dyersberg, Tenn. and Luke Kyle, 27, operates a restaurant in Dothan, Ala.
Tommy Kyle, the oldest of the six, is the only family member who has never worked at Chick-fil-A. Instead, he serves as a missionary with Nations of Coaches, a Christian-based sports ministry.
The Kyle’s faith has forever entwined their paths with that of another purpose-driven family — the Cathys, who opened their first restaurant in 1946 in Hapeville, Ga. and launched their flagship Chick-Fil-A brand in the 1960s. From the beginning, the restaurant was closed on Sundays, and Chick-fil-A President and Chief Operating Officer Dan Cathy said he plans to continue the tradition, mandating all franchises be closed on Sundays.
During a meeting with Columbus employees Wednesday afternoon, Cathy sat at a table, surrounded by the mostly-teenaged employees, and explained the philosophy behind the practice.
It’s not just about observing the Sabbath or giving people a chance to attend church, he said. The closure of all Chick-Fil-A restaurants on Sundays also is about giving employees a day to nurture and enjoy their families.
Rather than taking a bite out of profits, the business model seems to increase them. Monday through Saturday sales are so high, they offset any losses.
Cathy proposed a theory to his young listeners: The time they spend recharging, whether by attending church or just hanging out with family, results in broader smiles, better customer service and bigger profits.
In 2010, sales reached $3.5 billion — an 11.37 percent increase over the previous year. The chain now has more than 1,560 stores and more than 57,000 employees.
Joshua Banks, 17, is one of those employees. He began working at the Columbus store in January and said the restaurant’s Christian-based philosophy was a deciding factor when he began looking for employment.
As the son of Lighthouse Baptist Pastor Jimmy Banks, and as president of the church’s youth group, he needed a flexible schedule which put prayer above profit. There was no way he was going to work Sundays or Wednesday nights, he said.
And so he found a company that matched his core values.
Family-focused franchise
It’s not just the Christian business model that sets the company apart, said Freda Kyle. It’s also the family atmosphere.
“They truly care about people, and they’re there to help you,” she said. “They treat you just like you’re one of them. If somebody needs something, somebody’s going to be there from corporate for you.”
In December, when a restaurant owner passed away, company officials stepped in to assist his family, making sure their needs were met, but — perhaps more importantly — making sure they knew they weren’t alone.
“They just care about you as a person,” Freda Kyle said. “It extends to your family and your well-being. They’re good Christian people and what they say and how they act is who they are.”
The company notoriously is selective in choosing its franchise owners, typically employing them for a while, monitoring their progress, interviewing them numerous times and sometimes even interviewing their friends and family members.
The heavy vetting is not about being invasive or difficult, Waylon Kyle said. Rather, it’s a time-intensive process of making certain the people they get are the people they want — from the top down.
Freda Kyle said she took the same care when she hired the 80-plus employees who currently work at her store on 18th Avenue North. After all, she considers every person she hires as one of her children and treats them as such.
People warned her she would have trouble finding 80 good employees, but she’s pleased with her crew, and she expects most of them to stay. At her previous restaurant, she had very little turnover. Most of her employees had been with her at least five years. Two of her Huntsville employees enjoyed working with her so much, they transferred to Columbus.
“I love my people, because they make me who I am,” she said. “Without them, I can’t run a store. You build a relationship, and that’s what it’s all about. All those kids that work for me, I love them dearly.”
As a native of Columbus, and a 1964 graduate of New Hope High School, Freda Kyle said she has enjoyed returning to her favorite haunts and getting reacquainted with old friends.
But the best part, she contends, is going to work every day and knowing her children are standing in restaurants just like hers, greeting customers as she does, continuing what has become a family tradition.
After tornadoes ripped through the South last spring, the Kyles came together to distribute food to tornado victims. Every seminar and company conference is a mini-homecoming.
“How many parents get to work with their kids in a business like this?” she asked. “It’s just real special to me to think I go to work and love what I do and my kids do, too. I’m the most blessed lady you’ll ever meet.”
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
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