American Dairy Queen Corporation, franchisor of the DQ, recently announced its new DQ Grill & Chill restaurant opening in Maricopa County in Arizona. Conveniently situated at 2770 S Santan Village Pkwy, the restaurant is locally owned and operated by multi-unit franchisees, Greg and Wayne Cowgur and Chris Russell. This will be the group’s 13th location to open since they joined the brand in 2009.
“My father owned several locations, so I have grown up with Dairy Queen, ” says Greg Cowgur. “The brand has always evoked feelings of home and comfort to me, and my partners and I want the Gilbert community to be able to feel the same way. Wayne, Chris and I are excited to open our doors and serve DQ fans for years to come.”
Striking the perfect balance between yesterday and today, the DQ Grill & Chill flagship concept modernizes guests’ dining experience by offering made-to-order lunch and dinner options including GrillBurgers, Chicken Strip Baskets and delicious hot sandwiches. DQ® fans can also enjoy soft-serve favorites such as cones, sundaes and the signature Blizzard® Treat.
A welcoming environment for all, each DQ Grill & Chill location features a modern, open-air grill, separate “Grill” and “Chill” sections, comfortable booths, large wooden tables, warm lighting and upbeat music.
Chris, Greg and Wayne began their journey with Dairy Queen 10 years ago when they opened their first location. Since then, they have opened 12 locations throughout the Metro Phoenix, Marana and Prescott Valley areas. Previously, Chris and Greg has also owned small businesses while Wayne spent some time working as an accountant. The business and entrepreneurial spirit has been engrained in their professional lives long before opening their first DQ location.
“As all three of us looked into business opportunities we could to pursue together, Dairy Queen, felt like the obvious choice,” adds Wayne. “Given that we’re all family, Greg being my brother and Chris being my brother-in-law, we wanted to keep the tradition my dad started of running a business together as a family. Plus, the training and support the ADQ team has provided us over the years has had a tremendous impact on my our success and is the reason we are always eager to open the next location.”
What began as the 10-cent sale of an unknown frozen treat in 1938 quickly boomed into one of the most well-known companies of all time. Maintaining its recipe for success throughout nearly 80 years, ADQ has more than 7,000 locations worldwide and is initiating a plan to add more than 70 new restaurants in the United States in 2019.
