Shuckin’ Shack Fresh and Raw Tour Raises Over $52,000 for Charity, Unites The Franchise System
The live music tour covered 17 cities and 3,000 miles in 30 days, delivering a great guest experience while fundraising for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society systemwide.
Shuckin’ Shack, the 18-unit oyster bar concept, recently sponsored a system-wide live music tour, bringing Nashville singer-songwriters CJ Solar and Warren Garrett, as well as local favorites, to every Shuckin’ Shack location in the system. The franchisor sponsored the tour, and Franchise Owners accepted donations for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
“Just in numbers, we had 21 local singer-songwriters, went to 17 cities and traveled 3,000 miles in 30 days,” explained Darren Keeler, Vice President of Marketing and Creative at Shuckin’ Shack. “And we raised over $52,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as a system, so that’s just amazing.”
Keeler added that an opportunity to unite around local music and a shared mission was reinvigorating for Franchise Owners, showing each owner just how capable they are of organizing and executing such a successful event.
“The Fresh and Raw tour was a great opportunity for us to go to each location and support Franchise Owners in a multitude of ways,” said Jonathan Weathington, CEO of Shuckin’ Shack. “We produced marketing collateral and shared promotional strategies with the owners, but being on the road, going location to location, meant so much more.”
“It comes down to the smallest details,” Keeler said. “If we weren’t there, the events still would have been good, but with the support that our Franchise Owners got and the buy-in and excitement they felt from upper leadership just made it even greater.”
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is especially important to the Shuckin’ Shack network as two people in the franchise system, a Franchise Owner and Co-Founder, have close personal experiences with leukemia.
As indicated by an incredible turnout, many Shuckin’ Shack guests also resonate with the cause. At each stop, there were diners sharing their personal experiences with leukemia and lymphoma, supporting friends and family and enjoying time out.
“Franchisees were noticing that there were a lot of new customers at the events,” Keeler said. “That’s huge. If you can get new customers to come out for an event like this and discover your brand in this way, that’s phenomenal. We made a great first impression.”
Rounding out the tour was the concept’s Carolina Beach location, where the tour date aligned with the 15th anniversary of Shuckin’ Shack. “It was a big party,” Keeler said, with raffle prizes and live music, and the tour ended on a high note with $27,000 raised for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in a single night.