Raising Cane’s is taking its simple menu of chicken fingers, fries, sauce and Texas Toast to Europe. | Photo courtesy of Raising Cane’s
Raising Cane’s is coming to London.
Just days after Dave’s Hot Chicken announced plans for a 180-unit expansion across Europe, the Baton Rouge, Louisiana (and Dallas) based chicken-finger chain said Wednesday it will be opening a flagship location in London’s Picadilly Circus area late next year.
It will be Raising Cane’s first location in Europe, though not the chain’s first overseas. There are multiple locations across the Middle East, where the brand’s restaurants are franchised.
All of the U.K. units will be company-owned and operated. And Raising Cane’s is planning to open a London Support Office to support the growth there.
The London flagship will be the first of many planned for the United Kingdom, including units coming to The Strand, Oxford Circus, Paddington and South Bank in London, as well as drive-thru locations across the greater London area, the company said.
The company also said it will hire a president of Raising Cane’s U.K., who will oversee operations, and additional roles will be posted later this year. About 700 jobs are expected to be created within the first year.
Owned and founded by Todd Graves, Raising Cane’s is on a tear to reach 1,600 units by the end of the decade. Graves, who is co-CEO, is determined for the chicken-finger chain to become a Top 10 restaurant brand, and it’s well on the way.
Cane’s ranked No. 18 on the Top 500 Restaurant Chain list this year by Restaurant Business sister brand Technomic.
The brand ended 2024 with more than 900 units, annual sales of more than $5 billion and an average unit volume of $6.6 million. The company expects to open 100 units this year and pass the 1,000-unit count.
In addition to the support center in London, the company is also planning to open a new Dallas-Area Restaurant Support Office in Plano, Texas, which is quadrupling in size the space available there. The new space can support thousands of crewmembers with conference facilities and office spaces, which will be an increase from the current space that serves roughly 650.
The company also is adjusting its internal support structure to support the planned growth.
Cane’s said it is creating seven operating divisions, and will be hiring senior executive-level leaders across various functions and departments.
“We’ve always had an unconventional approach to growing our brand and at the center of it all are our crewmembers through our restaurant-first approach. We make it a point to reward, recognize and retain our crew through industry-leading programs, compensation and benefits packages,” said co-CEO and Chief Operating Officer A.J. Kumaran.
Cane’s also offers a Restaurant Partner Program, offering top-performing leaders equity in their restaurants with no personal investment. The program has about 194 Restaurant Partners, and has paid out more than $32 million to date in incentives.
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