Fourteen Foods has recently purchased the Dairy Queen location in Lafayette, Tennessee, a store previously owned by Chris and Andrea Crowder. Led by CEO, Matt Frauenshuh, the company continues to extend its reach and involvement in communities like Lafayette, preserving each of its franchise locations’ unique stories. The deal was closed on March 22, and Fourteen Foods looks forward to leading the store’s celebration of its first anniversary on April 18.
“Our story has its next chapter,” said CEO Matt Frauenshuh, “and Fourteen Foods is once more positioned to use our resources to support local communities and contribute to the partnerships, initiatives, and growth that Lafayette, Tennessee is poised to experience. We are proud to be part of the DQ Grill & Chill® franchise system and welcome this store into the Fourteen Foods franchisee family.”
The former owners of this newly acquired location, Chris and Andrea Crowder, are long-standing community members whose entrepreneurial endeavors have proved beneficial to the Lafayette community. Andrea has taught in the community for over two decades, and the couple has built and sold three Subway restaurants in the area. Chris, a contractor, entrepreneur, and commercial property owner, took advantage of one of his long-vacant properties to add a Dairy Queen store to the community, and while thoughts of selling the store were never top-of-mind, a compelling letter from the Fourteen Foods organization brought Andrea to consider its family values and the potential for the store’s growth under a more extensive group whose family-centric values aligned with the Crowders’ own.
With the transition of ownership, the Crowders look forward to new ways to contribute to the community while managing other businesses and spending time with family. Their daughter will remain on as an employee of the Fourteen Foods-owned stores. The company looks forward to continued measured and meaningful growth in communities like Lafayette, where local fundraisers, community partnerships, and small-town vibes inform the traffic and scaling of the company.
