From Chick-fil-A Cow mascot suit to franchise owner, Lakeland native Kara Kirkland opened a new Chick-fil-A restaurant March 5 in her hometown.
The Shepherd Road Chick-fil-A is at 6875 S. Florida Ave. Chick-fil-A Inc. selected Kirkland to be the local owner-operator, a company news release said.
New owner started Chick-fil-A career in high school
“Opening Chick-fil-A Shepherd Road is an incredible honor and a true full-circle moment,” Kirkland said in the release. “The lessons I learned here as a teenager were the launching pad for everything that’s followed.
“I’m so excited to build a place where others can discover their potential and where my son can grow up surrounded by the same care and community that shaped me,” Kirkland said.
Opening her own restaurant is more than a career milestone — it’s a return to her roots. Kirkland, a George Jenkins High School grad, started at age 17 at another Chick-fil-A on South Florida Avenue, owned by Scott Brickhouse. There, she worked alongside her mom and brother.
What started as a first job became a meaningful experience that sparked her passion for hospitality and community. After high school, she continued working for Chick-fil-A while pursuing her degree, then broadened her experience through opportunities in the hospitality industry.
In 2016, she returned to Chick-fil-A and set her sights on becoming an owner-operator.
A free Chick-fil-A entrée among opening day offerings
The new Shepard Road Chick-fil-A began serving at 6:30 a.m. on March 5, creating approximately 120 jobs.
The chicken restaurant’s hours are Monday through Saturday from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Chick-fil-A restaurants are famously closed on Sundays.
The new location, with a slightly smaller dining room than the older one up the road, offers dine-in, drive-thru, carry-out, curbside pick-up, third-party delivery, mobile pick-up and Mobile Thru, which is a dedicated drive-thru lane for mobile orders.
To celebrate the restaurant opening, Kirkland and her team invited the community to show their spots at a Moove-In Party on opening day.
Whether it’s a full cow suit or a simple cow-spotted accessory, anyone who visits the restaurant on opening day with cow attire can redeem one free entrée or kid’s meal inside the restaurant or in the drive-thru.
Kirkland is committed to giving back to the Lakeland community
Kirkland is participating in the Chick-fil-A Shared Table program, partnering locally with Talbot House Ministries to redirect surplus food to neighbors in need. Nationwide, the Chick-fil-A Shared Table program has helped created more than 42 million meals to date, with more than 2,500 restaurants participating.
Chick-fil-A Inc. celebrated the opening with a $25,000 donation to Feeding America in honor of the new restaurant. These funds will be distributed to partners in the greater Tampa area to aid in the fight against hunger.
Chick-fil-A Inc. is third largest quick-serve restaurant in U.S.
Chick-fil-A, Inc. is the third largest quick-service restaurant company in the United States, and employs more than 200,000 workers in more than 3,000 restaurants across the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom and Singapore.
The family-owned and privately held company got its start in 1946, and was founded by S. Truett Cathy.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: From cow mascot to owner, Lakeland native opens Chick-fil-A
Reporting by Paul Nutcher, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
