hick-fil-A is using drones and ‘game film’ to study how to beat its drive-thru order record

Chick-fil-A worker taking a drive-thru order

Chick-fil-A is trying to up its drive-thru game.
Getty Images—Scott Olson

Post-game analysis of Chick-fil-A’s chicken-serving has helped the Atlanta-based company speed up its drive-thrus and log more revenue per restaurant than any other fast food joint in the US, the Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend.

Beating out McD’s per-restaurant stats, Chick-fil-A did ~$21.6 billion in sales across ~3,000 US restaurants in 2023, according to QSR Magazine. Per WSJ, car-centric franchises are carrying the herd:

  • One Rockford, Illinois location boosted its drive-thru sales by 50% in 2022 after enlisting the help of Chick-fil-A’s Film Studies unit—a team of drone pilots that provides franchisees with aerial footage used to fix slowdowns in drive-thru lanes.
  • A new Atlanta franchise that opened last year doesn’t even have a dining area—just a second-floor kitchen and four drive-thru lanes that can serve ~700 cars per hour.
  • Food orders at the drive-up window accounted for about 60% of Chick-fil-A’s revenue last year.

Everybody wants to eat in their car: About 43% of fast food orders in the US overall happen at the drive-thru window, and 27% of those meals are downed before exiting the vehicle, according to Circana. That’s probably why McDonald’s is testing out a new Sonic-esque restaurant, CosMc’s, while Chipotle and Shake Shack are adding more drive-up lanes, per WSJ.—ML

This report was originally published by Morning Brew.


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