How Lincoln Kennedy successfully opened 2 Angry Crab Shack restaurants after starting as NFL player

Lincoln Kennedy is a former NFL player who was with the Atlanta Falcons and Oakland Raiders. After retiring from the NFL, Kennedy relocated to Phoenix, AZ, where he became an active member of the NFL Retired Players Association.

The association also offered him the opportunity to meet with Ron Lou, the founder of Angry Crab Shack. This encounter will set the former NFL player on the path to becoming a successful Angry Crab Shack franchise owner, according to Black Enterprise.

Becoming a restaurant franchise owner was not a tough experience for Kennedy as he has previous experience in restaurant franchising. In 1997, he was reportedly a Subway and Blimpie sandwich shop owner before he decided to add an Italian restaurant to his portfolio.

“I learned early on that the food business can be very tricky and needs to be monitored all the time. People like to feed other people and sometimes employees want to give free food away,” Kennedy told Black Enterprise.

“Not a good business practice. I felt that if I ever got back into the food business, I would be more involved in watching and learning how to manage it better. I also learned lessons about overhead and supply lines.”

According to him, his experience in the restaurant business has made him learn the importance of paying attention to trends and key times during the year to make a greater impression on the communities his restaurant serves.

“Although I am not managing day-to-day operations with my current restaurants, I’ve learned enough about the business to pay enough attention to the details so I can be involved with major decisions and marketing. I’ve also learned the importance of paying attention to trends and key times during the year to make a greater impression upon the communities our restaurants are located in. I’m really big on community involvement.”

His interest in this field quickly piqued his interest in Angry Crab Shack, one of the fastest-growing franchises and he wanted in. He first started from the corporate side and later expressed interest in becoming a franchise owner.

“At first, I got involved with the corporate side. I was bringing in potential investors. Ron (CEO) and Andy Diamond (president) expressed they wanted to start franchising the Angry Crab Shack brand, and I wanted to help,” said Kennedy.

“A few years later, I saw an opportunity to get involved with a franchise in Phoenix. We took over an old Applebee’s and flipped it into an Angry Crab Shack. Our Norterra location was a great find. The location as well as the popularity and reputation of the Angry Crab Shack brand really took off and I started making residual income.”

“From there, I decided to try and open more. Since then, I’ve opened in Vegas, and I’m currently working on opening a few more in the future,” he said.

The father of three finds satisfaction in seeing how the unique dining experience at Angry Crab Shack puts smiles on people’s faces.