First 100 Campout brings out Chick-fil-A lovers

You really have to love Chick-fil-A to camp out in front the restaurant for 24 hours.

But each year, thousands of Chick-fil-A groupies do just that. Now people living in the Millsboro area have joined the growing list.

Joanne Hammond of Millsboro says it was her crazy daughter who talked her into it. Debbie responds with a huge smile as they take part in an event like no other in the restaurant world – the First 100 Campout.

They were among the first customers to show up around 6:30 a.m., April 4, in anticipation of the 6:30 a.m. April 5 opening of a new Chick-fil-A along Route 113 in Millsboro.

In a Chick-fil-A tradition, the first 100 customers 18 years of age and older who show up and register receive a digital card for a meal a week for a year valued at about $300.

The only catch is that they have to camp out for 24 hours until the restaurant opens at 6:30 a.m. the following day. That meant they couldn't leave the designated camping area. The restaurant was open for pit stops, and restaurant staff provided free meals.

Over the 14 years of First 100 celebrations, the company has given away more than $34 million in free food.

Three other restaurants in the Mid-Atlantic region also celebrated grand openings April 5.

At the Millsboro restaurant, more than 50 people showed up early in the morning and pitched their tents. Because the limit had not been reached, other campers were permitted on the parking lot after the deadline.

Chick-fil-A provided entertainment, games, a DJ dance party, security – and plenty of Chick-fil-A food.

Most at the campout were keeping an eye on the weather, with a forecast that included a wind advisory, scattered thunderstorms and a drop in the overnight temperature from the 70s into the 30s.

Millsboro franchise operator Tim Sweetman grew up eating Chick-fil-A at an Annapolis mall, and his first job was working at Chick-fil-A in Edgewater, Md. He graduated from Boyce College in Louisville, Ky., and eventually joined the company as director of training and leadership development for three Annapolis restaurants before being becoming an operator of his own store.

During the grand opening weekend, Sweetman is collecting children's books and clothing to be donated to John M. Clayton, East Millsboro and Long Neck elementary schools.

Sweetman is continuing to interview for 100 full- and part-time positions at the Millsboro location.

All about Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A is one the largest family-owned companies in the country, with more than 2,200 locations in 47 states and Washington, D.C. Chick-fil-A opened in Delaware 25 years ago in the Dover Mall. Millsboro is the 12^th location in the state and is among 140 new restaurants scheduled to open in 2018.

The company was founded by Truett Cathy in the early 1960s with the first mall restaurant opening in 1967. Cathy's original restaurant, Dwarf Grill, opened in 1946 in Hapeville, Ga. His son, Dan, is current CEO.

The company is one of the most sought-after franchises in the country. Chick-fil-A receives about 24,000 franchisee applications per year and selects about 100. The reason? The franchise fee is $10,000 and the company pays for all startup costs including real estate, construction and restaurant equipment.

Potential operators go through an extensive interview process and training program that can take months. “Franchise operators are the backbone of the chain,” according to the Chick-fil-A website.