Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers

Founders Todd Graves and Craig Silvey were both enrolled in a business plan writing course while studying at different universities. Graves wrote the business plan and Silvey submitted it, for which Silvey received a C-minus grade. At the time, Graves worked at Guthrie's Chicken Fingers.[1] The business plan was rejected numerous times by potential investors, so Graves earned the needed money working as a boilermaker in a Los Angeles refinery and fishing for sockeye salmon in Alaska. He and Silvey obtained a SBA loan, which they used to open their first restaurant, located in Baton Rouge at the intersection of Highland Road and State Street near the LSU campus.[2][3]

The chain first began expanding internationally in 2015, opening its first restaurant in Kuwait.[4] The namesake mascot, a dog, is not seen on signage and merchandise, as dogs are not popular in Kuwait.[5]

In March 2020, many of Cane’s locations switched from dine-in to pick-up and take away service only because of the COVID-19 pandemic, while others closed temporarily. As of July 2020, certain locations had reopened their dining rooms, although Graves said the company was in no rush to do so on the full scale.[6]

In 2021, in response to a shortage of workers the company began dispatching hundreds[7]of corporate employees to work in its resturaunts as cooks and cashiers, in addition to their existing duties regarding the hiring of new employees. The company plans to hire 10,000 new employees and invest $70 million towards wage increases for workers.[8] The company's co-CEO claims that corporate employees are trained in the kitchen and on the register under normal circumstances.[9]

A December 2, 2021 report by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review revealed that Raising Cane's is expanding into Pennsylvania in 2022, including Pittsburgh. The story was confirmed by the company, citing social media requests and the chain's large presence in neighboring Ohio.[10]