Chick-Fil-A in Rancho Cucamonga: Negative Publicity is Good Publicity
When negative publicity is good publicity
Tonight I went to Victoria Gardens Chick-Fil-A, located in Rancho Cucamonga, for the August 1 Appreciation Day organized by Mike Huckabee. I have never seen anything like it. The drive-through traffic flowed into the street for half a block. There were three lines of traffic on the shopping center parking lot. Four to five hundred people on foot were lined up from two directions at the door and the restaurant was packed wall to wall. My thought was, “Do they have enough chicken?”
Background
For those who have not heard about the controversy, Dan Cathy, President of Chick-Fil-A drew the ire of some same-sex supporters by stating his biblically based opinion that marriage should be between a man and a woman. His statement went viral. Several elected officials, including Chicago’s Rahm Emanuel stated that they would not allow a Chick-Fil-A franchise to open in the First Ward.
Chick-Fil-A restaurants were already enjoying enviable profits compared to similar restaurants. The news coverage made so people curious. Those who are curious take time to eat at the restaurant to see what the problem is all about.
Forbes Magazine contributor Derek Broes stated that “ Chick-Fil-A’s sales for the day approximate $100 million. His observation was similar to mine. The media is focusing 90% of its attention on the Chick-Fil-A protestors, giving the impression that the number of protestors is greater than the number of supporters.
Conspiracy theory
My husband said maybe the Chick-Fil-A Board of Directors planned this whole thing. My question is “How?” This would require proponents of same sex marriage coordinate efforts with opponents of same sex marriage. Could this be a “win-win” situation? Everybody gets publicity!
I took pictures and video at night with my cellphone. I know they could have been better.
