---
title: "Lee's Famous Recipe® Chicken Unveils New Restaurant Prototype at Annual “Family Reunion” Brand Conference"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/1e54a43e-bcd3-482f-aa66-43106f957e71
source: "Franchising.com"
original_url: https://www.franchising.com/news/20231117_lee39s_famous_recipe_chicken_unveils_new_restaurant_prototype_at_annual_fam.html
category: "Chicken"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Chicken"
topics: ["Operations"]
published: 2023-11-17T12:00:00.000Z
modified: 2026-10-31T20:07:53.472Z
image: https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1561758033-d89a9ad46330?w=1600&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop
---

# Lee's Famous Recipe® Chicken Unveils New Restaurant Prototype at Annual “Family Reunion” Brand Conference

**TL;DR:** Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken unveiled a new restaurant prototype at its annual Brand Conference, which will launch in 2024 and feature a modern design with smart elements to enhance customer experience. The conference also honored top-performing franchisees with awards.

*originally published in Franchising.com on 2023-11-17. [Read the original](https://www.franchising.com/news/20231117_lee39s_famous_recipe_chicken_unveils_new_restaurant_prototype_at_annual_fam.html).*

## Story

"Our annual Brand Conference is an opportunity to honor our amazing team members and spotlight their achievements," said Ryan Weaver, CEO of Lee’s Famous Recipe® Chicken. "We look forward to this event where we get to reconnect with our franchisees, employees and partners across our system. It is a time of celebration and an opportunity to look to the future for our company. We have made a variety of changes this year, so there was a lot of energy in the room.”

Perhaps the biggest moment of the event was the unveiling of a new restaurant prototype designed by Chute Gerdeman that will launch in 2024. Amidst the excitement, the announcement of the new restaurant prototype marks a significant leap for Lee's Famous Recipe® Chicken as it ventures into a contemporary era, offering a fresh look that is complemented with smart design elements that will enhance the customer experience, including a dual drive through, online ordering pick-up area, and more.

“Our new prototype offers both existing and new partners a modern design that streamlines operations and enables them to perform better while also benefiting their bottom line. Our new design can also be adapted for our existing restaurants, and conversion opportunities” continued Weaver.

In addition to the new prototype, the 2023 Lee’s Family Reunion Brand Conference featured an awards ceremony that recognized top performers. Franchisees were honored for their passion, dedication, and exceptional efforts to grow the Lee’s brand. The award winners this year include the following.

- **Lee’s Legacy Award:** Kim & Scott Griffith, former multi-unit franchisees from Ohio

- **Operator of the Year Award:** The Erdmann Family, Milan TN

- **Rising Star Award:** The Smith Family, New Albany & Corydon IN

- **Local Marketer of the Year Award:** Ryan & Wanda Hoehn, Delphos, St Marys & Wapakoneta OH

- **Pacesetter Award:** Henry Loving, Richmond VA

Lee’s also introduced a new team of marketing & public relations partners, including Plein Air, Ink Link Marketing and SLWM. The agencies will support the Lee’s Famous Recipe® Chicken brand and it’s restaurant operators.

## Entities

- Franchising.com (publication)
- QSR (sector)
- franchise awards (topic)
- Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken (company)
- restaurant prototype (topic)
- Ryan Weaver (person)
- Chute Gerdeman (company)
- marketing partnerships (topic)
- brand conference (topic)
- The Smith family (person)
- Henry Loving (person)
- Plein Air (company)

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Originally reported by Franchising.com (https://www.franchising.com/news/20231117_lee39s_famous_recipe_chicken_unveils_new_restaurant_prototype_at_annual_fam.html). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/1e54a43e-bcd3-482f-aa66-43106f957e71).