What matters most in the announcement that Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux is opening an Atlanta office is what wasn’t said—at least publicly, writes Business Report Associated Publisher JR Ball in his new opinion piece.
Sure, Brandon Landry, the company’s founder and CEO, put a wonderful spin on the news. Sounding like a politician stumping for votes, the former LSU basketball walk-on turned All-America entrepreneur made it clear the company will remain based in Baton Rouge, adding, “Louisiana will always be the heartbeat and home of our brand.”
However, the most telling words he said—at least from the Baton Rouge point of view—were these: “… but our incredible growth and vision to be more than a restaurant demands that we do everything possible to field a best-in-class team across all areas of business.”
Translation: Baton Rouge is great if you’re looking for tap-pulling bartenders, midriff-bearing waitresses and clever marketing folks, but when it comes to high-level, brainiac executives with franchise-building credentials then Atlanta is the place you want to be.
It’s the same nuance-filled story Todd Graves spun in 2009, with the chicken tender king saying the Raising Cane’s headquarters would remain in Baton Rouge even though most of its existing and newly hired C-suite executives would work from the company’s corporate office in Plano, just north of Dallas.
Let’s be clear, this is no criticism of Walk-On’s or Raising Cane’s. The reality of the business they’ve chosen is franchise foodie executives cluster in a handful of cities and the only way they’ll join your payroll is by bringing the job to them.
From the broader Baton Rouge perspective, however, the Walk-On’s announcement is simply the latest example of talented, highly educated people either not moving here or—as has been the case for years—leaving the area for a hotspot destination shortly after earning their TOPS-funded degree from LSU or Southern University.
This outmigration is a problem with far-reaching and long-term impacts on the quality of life and economy of Baton Rouge, Ball writes.
Read Ball’s full column from the latest edition of Business Report. Send comments to editor@businessreport.com.
