Ker's WingHouse

WingHouse Bar & Grill (formerly Ker’s WingHouse Bar & Grill) is a restaurant chain based in Florida, created and founded by Ed Burnett, a Canadian restaurant entrepreneur. After opening his first WingHouse location, Burnett sought out investors to open the restaurant in other locations. Burnett accepted investor Crawford Ker (a former National Football League player) to assist in financing the expansion. It is regarded as a “ breastaurant” featuring “WingHouse Girls” as servers, similar to that of Hooters.

Opening

After Clearwater, Florida chicken wing pioneering restaurant chain Hooters began rapidly expanding, Florida-based, Canadian-born restaurant entrepreneur Ed Burnett saw the opportunity. Burnett secured the rights to a closed restaurant ("Knockers") and opened "The WingHouse" restaurant at 7369 Ulmerton Road, Largo, Florida, a high-traffic corridor. He strategically selected the restaurant in between where people work (commercial real estate) and live (residential real estate), to appeal to the local lunch crowd and family dining crowd. This flagship location proved to be a success soon after launching and is the model that the chain expanded on.

Burnett, looking to expand to additional locations, accepted a financing partner (Crawford Ker) during this time frame, to open additional locations and beyond. Burnett's goal was to open 20 to 50 locations, and then sell the chain to a larger restaurant chain or investors.

In 1992, Ker retired from the NFL and took a job selling cars at a local dealer. In 1994, he invested half interest in a Largo, Florida wing restaurant called, ''"Wing House"'' that imitated Hooters. The restaurant was always The Wing House, and the atmosphere was always toned down to make it more family-friendly.Benham, Kelle
"A wing and a player"
St. Petersburg Times, July 15, 2005]

Two additional locations were opened in the Tampa Bay area in the following three years.

Lawsuit

Ker won a $1.2-million jury award from Hooters in late 2004, which had sued him for trademark violations for allegedly using their uniforms and decor. After a three-week trial in which lawyers discussed hula hoops, surfboards, scrunchy socks, pantyhose, and something called "vicarious sexual recreation", the jury ruled that no trademark infringement existed and Hooters was penalized for their frivolous lawsuit.
Hooters appealed the decision, but in June, 2006, the United States courts of appeals, 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta upheld the verdict.

Expansion

As of 2007, the company had 1,700 employees at 22 locations with revenue of nearly $60 million. Ker attended, and the company participated in, the 2007 National Buffalo Wing Festival and placed first in the ''traditional x-hot sauce'' category and gained some national recognition.

Franchising

On June 4, 2008 the company announced the launch of its national franchise program. In mid-2008 the chain operated 19 locations in Florida and Texas and expected to add six franchises by the end of 2008, and 48 by 2011. The initial focus was for franchises in the Southeastern US.

WingHouses feature several amenities that differ from other wing restaurants, including Hooters. There is a full liquor bar in every store, sports memorabilia line the walls instead of NASCAR and most locations include a game room.

Ownership history

* ARC Group Inc. (Oct. 2019 - present)
* Soaring Wings LLC ( 2014 - Oct. 2019) Soaring Wings LLC is now inactive (as of 2021)

Charity

Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida attracted the rich and famous; WingHouse hosted three events to raise money for charity."Crawford Ker's WingHouse to Host Doug Williams Celebrity Experience and Max Starks Celebrity VIP Party"
PR Newswire, January 15, 2009

References

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* http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-18257851_ITM

Restaurants in Florida
Regional restaurant chains in the United States
Restaurants in Texas
Restaurants established in 1994
1994 establishments in Florida