Chick-fil-A Poised to Outgrow Taco Bell, Burger King and Wendy's

If you're lucky enough to live near a Chick-fil-A, then you likely know all about the rapidly growing fast food chain's reputation for great food and great service. Now, that reputation has put the company on the fast track to becoming one of the country's top three fast food chains in the next two years, behind Starbucks and McDonald's.

Restaurant consultancy Technomic reported the findings, which correlate with the high scores the chain receives in areas like satisfaction, positive buzz, and likelihood of purchase, according to YouGov BrandIndex.

When asked about ascending into the top three by 2020, a Chick-fil-A spokesperson told BuzzFeed News, "The trajectory we're on would support that."

David Farmer, the company's vice president of restaurant experience, explained that he aims to create "[NASCAR] pit crew efficiency, but where you feel like you just got hugged in the process ... We'd better not lose our edge relative to service and hospitality."

In addition to that hospitality, electronic upgrades like mobile ordering with the chain's app and on-site ordering by tablet have helped to speed up service, creating what is easily one of the most efficient fast food systems around. The chain is also testing options for meal delivery, much like many of its competitors.

Chick-fil-A opened its first location in Atlanta in 1967 and has steadily expanded, counting 2,300 locations today, each of which earns about $4 million annually, according to QSR magazine. In comparison, the average McDonald's earns around $2.5 million per year.

"The pathway is in Chick-fil-A's favor in terms of continuing to leapfrog iconic chains that are still doing fine," explained Technomic senior principal David Henkes, noting that while other fast-food companies are now doing well after years of competing with the Chipotles of the world, "Chick-fil-A is doing phenomenally."

While the sheer volume of sales Chick-fil-A is seeing may force it to cut back on some customer interactions, Farmer said he wants to say committed to the company's core values.

"I don't think that's everybody's angle, but it's our angle," he said. "You have a transaction and it's functional and it works. But where do you go where the transaction is uplifting?"

Photo Credit: Twitter / @ChickfilA