During these tough times, a business' success is measured through various criteria. Aside from the ability to survive the losses caused by the lockdown, the way a business responds to help the community and its people is also important to look at. If they took great pains to ensure the survival of not just the brand and venture but also their staff, then, they're worth supporting.
This is exactly the case with Raising Cane's as they take several steps to make sure that they don't just survive the pandemic on their own.
No Crew Left Behind
A true testament to the dedication of Raising Cane's to its community is its No Crew Left Behind project which ensured that not one staff member of their team gets furloughed or laid off during the pandemic. They are pulling off this project by foregoing the paychecks of the CEOs Todd Graves and AJ Kumaran. They also set a goal to limit their losses to 25%. If they manage to do so, they will be able to keep everyone on their team.
Aside from these efforts, the company also shifted their operations in the non-drive-thru stores. Even if they can't serve chicken fingers to their communities, the Raising Cane's employees were still kept on-board by shifting the operations to creating face masks for health workers in their locales.
By doing this, their staff were able to keep earning a living while the company gets to give back to the communities they are in by providing support to their local health workers.
In addition to these efforts, Raising Cane's are also making sure that their staff continue to be in high spirits despite the challenges. They distributed $2 million to their frontliners, a feat that not many brands can match.
Things are continuing to look up for the company, especially since they are in the process of hiring 5000 new team members in the middle of the pandemic. With all the good they are doing in the world, Raising Cane's prices are still a pretty great value.
Fundraisers
Like other brands, Raising Cane's started a virtual fundraising campaign during the quarantine period called ‘Cane's in the Moment' Virtual Entertainment Series. It's partly for raising money for healthcare workers and disaster relief organizations and partly for keeping people entertained at home. They invited a different group or artist every Wednesday and Friday to perform and people are encouraged to donate however much they can.
Aside from this, their One Love Neck Gaiters are also made available over the quarantine period. These are basically face masks that people can wear to cover up while in public. All of the proceeds of the sales are donated to the local healthcare community, so it's pretty much a win-win merch. Not only will it help you take steps to contain the virus but it will also help the health workers in the process.
Continued Community Support
Aside from the work they do for the local healthcare workers, Raising Cane's continue to be proactive in the communities they're in even in the middle of the health crisis. They continued to push for a few projects that benefit locals.
It might not seem like much but the brand took time to celebrate the accomplishments of graduating seniors nationwide. Since these young folks were deprived of getting the last hurrah they deserve for finishing high school despite the difficulties the health crisis brought upon everyone, Raising Cane's made sure that they still get to have some fun.
They launched two projects to celebrate with high school and college graduates. One is a Virtual Graduation Party on Facebook Live with Snoop Dog (DJ Snoopadelic) and Shaquille O'Neal (DJ Diesel). Everyone can actually join the fun, not just the graduates.
The other is a series of customized videos for the specific schools Raising Cane's have built special relationships and partnerships with in the past. Each school will receive a ‘Congrats Seniors' video from one of three pro football stars: Deshaun Watson (Houston Texans quarterback), Todd Gurley (Atlanta Falcons running back), and DeAndre Hopkins (Arizona Cardinals wide receiver).
Always Giving Back
All of these aren't exactly very surprising from Raising Cane's because they have always been known to be very supportive and generous when it comes to helping and giving back to the communities their stores are a part of. The owners are noted philanthropists who have started many fundraisers and helped out lots of organizations in the past.
However, these efforts are still worth noting since they can also be scratched up to the founder's past experience and forward thinking. Aside from learning great lessons from the devastation brought by Hurricane Katrina to their business, Graves also started preparing the moment Starbucks started closing stores in China early in 2020. These gave him enough time to gear up for the tough times, and what a good thing he did.
These efforts are definitely greatly appreciated. Hopefully, more brands follow suit.
