Published: 2/12/09
Chick-Fil-A Opens Doors With 100 Customers Waiting
for Free Food
If there was any question whether Chick-fil-A has a loyal customer
base, that question was answered last week when over 100 people camped
out in front of the new Chick-fil-A stand-alone restaurant outside
of Eastpoint Mall. Chick-fil-A officially opened its newest location
on Feb. 5 with its traditional First 100 promotion where the first
100 people receive a one-year supply of Chick-fil-A. That's right,
the store gave away over $26,000 of free food and each person received
52 free Chick-fil-A meal certificates. We started our First 100 promotion
about four to five years ago out in Arizona, said Dave Villager from
the store's corporate office in Atlanta. It was a way to create buzz
for the opening of a new store. Danielle Alderson is the operator
and owner of the new store. Many of her customers will remember her
as the operator and owner of the Chick-fil-A inside Eastpoint Mall.
It's awesome to have the community out here, she said. Without the
community, there would be no Chick-fil-A. The first 100 earned their
food as they started lining up 24 hours before the grand opening and
spent the night in temperatures that dipped into the teens. Many of
them stayed in tents that had portable heaters. Alderson said the
100th person was in line by 2:30 p.m. on Feb. 4. Chick-fil-A was nice
enough to feed the crowd with free lunch and dinner. You never know
what to expect with the weather. It was cold out there. We thought
the least we could do was feed them (while they were waiting). James
Woodrow and his brother Matt were two of the 100 customers waiting
for food. It is worth the wait. We both get $260 worth of food for
a year, said James, as he was explaining why everyone was waiting
in line overnight. After the store opened and all 100 customers got
their certificates, Chick-fil-A had a ribbon cutting and the traditional
first bite. The food chain is different than most as Chick-fil-A is
closed on Sundays and each individual store is locally owned and operated.
The Chick-fil-A inside Eastpoint Mall will remain open with a new
operator. This Baltimore area has always been stronghold for Chick-fil-A,
Villager said. The new location is expected to create 65 new jobs
for the area. Did you miss your chance to get your years supply of
Chick-fil-A? Don't worry, you'll get another chance to do it again
as another new Chick-fil-A is expected to open in the Martin Plaza
in Middle River. But instead of freezing, you'll probably be sweating
for your food because the grand opening is scheduled for July. The
new Eastpoint store is located on 7907 Eastern Ave. and is open Monday
through Saturday from 6 a.m. - 10 p.m.
