Fast food chain Savvy Sliders opens two branches in Tippecanoe County
LAFAYETTE, Ind. – To celebrate its first Indiana location, which held a grand opening in Lebanon on Wednesday, Savvy Sliders also unveiled plans for its second and third locations to be built in Tippecanoe County.
The Michigan-based fast-food chain specializing in sliders opened its first store in 2018. Since then, it has expanded to Ohio, Texas, Tennessee, Florida, Louisiana, and now Indiana.
Here’s what we know about the two proposed stores in Tippecanoe County.
Where in Lafayette will Savvy Sliders open?
According to the Savvy Sliders website, a Lafayette store is planned for 2862 Old US 231 S.
Mike Bauer, a Lafayette-based business owner who owns 22 Subway locations in Lafayette and Terre Haute, is the man who brought the Michigan-founded chain to the Hoosier State.
Where will Savvy Sliders open in West Lafayette?
The second store in Tippecanoe County will be located across the Wabash River at 1060 Sagamore Parkway W. in West Lafayette.
What inspired Bauer to bring Savvy Sliders to Indiana?
Bauer said he had never heard of Savvy Sliders until he received an unsolicited call from the chain’s headquarters.
“They told me they had heard of me as a franchisee and were interested in talking to me about their brand. As a business person, I never turn down a conversation, so I spoke to them on the phone for about 20 minutes,” Bauer said. “I looked at their social media pages and found the concept pretty interesting.”
After that initial conversation, Bauer and his girlfriend planned a weekend trip to Michigan to visit nearly two dozen Savvy Sliders locations. As he saw the store interior models, sampled the restaurant’s various menu options, and met several employees, he realized Savvy Sliders was everything he wanted in a restaurant.
In addition to confirmed locations in Lebanon, Lafayette and West Lafayette, Bauer says it has about five more locations in Indiana in its sights.
Bauer said he deliberately chose the locations for his restaurants, particularly the Old US 231 location, because he knows firsthand that more restaurants are needed in the area.
“This is a densely populated residential area, and they shouldn’t have to drive all the way to the freeway or to the Purdue campus to get something to eat. I already have a Subway on this side of town and my offices there, I’ve experienced it myself,” Bauer said. “I understand what national chains are doing when they make plans to build stores in these areas, but I always try to find ways to serve this community. I’m local here, I’m here in this community, and I want to be where my people need me.”
What is Savvy Sliders’ food and business concept?
These are not typical sliders, said Bauer, which he liked.
Each slider burger weighs about 2 ounces, Bauer said, which is quite a lot for a slider. At a Savvy Sliders restaurant, fresh, never frozen meat is used and the chicken is breaded and marinated to order. Bauer said everything is made to order.
Another big incentive for the chain, according to Bauer, is Savvy Sliders’ “More 2 Love” charity foundation. The company’s philanthropic arm is similarly attractive to Subway’s model with the “Subway Cares Foundation.”
“This gives us the opportunity to continue to help those in our community that we serve every day,” Bauer said. “With this philanthropic arm, we can do things like throw parties for underprivileged children, hand out back-to-school gifts and listen to how else our community needs us. Being local is very important to me and that’s exactly what Savvy Sliders offers.”
Jillian Ellison is a reporter for the Journal and Courier. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on X at @ellison_writes.
