Yes, Bluffton, it’s officially ‘Bo Time’ — get ready for Bojangles’
For a local franchisee of Bojangles’, Friday morning was one to remember. A ground-breaking ceremony was held in the spot where he plans to open the chain’s first location in Bluffton.
And his wife went into labor.
J.K. Jay, president of Jay Foods, LLC, celebrated the long-awaited moment of shovel meeting dirt at 8239 Pinellas Drive, just off Buckwalter Parkway, and then he rushed off to be by his wife’s side.
Jay said he and his family have visited Hilton Head Island for years and had their eyes on opening stores in the area. Jay Foods also is the franchisee of the Bojangles’ on Robert Smalls Parkway in Beaufort.
“Bojangles’ footprint is the Carolinas, and this was one of the last areas that we don’t have a store,” Jay said. “It’s such a great and wonderful community that it just made so much sense for us to come here. We’re so excited to be a part of all the wonderful things going on down here.”
Jay’s father, Jerome Jay, Mayor Lisa Sulka, members of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce and Bo, Bojangle’s chicken mascot, helped mark the occasion Friday with golden shovels.
Sulka addressed the small crowd gathered and said the Bojangles’ was making an investment into the “high-tech business area” of the town and would serve the right demographic.
“My family will go miles to get a Bojangles’ biscuit, and there was nowhere to go to get one really,” she said. “Maybe Beaufort, but we just don’t travel that far.”
The store was originally set to open in July 2015 and then October 2015. Jay said he expects to open the restaurant sometime in the fall, around late October or early November.
The town of Bluffton delayed final approval last year, citing issues with stormwater drainage, vehicular traffic safety and driveway configuration.
“There were times where we were discouraged because we’re so excited to just be a part of this community and serve this community,” Jay said. “We’re glad that it’s here now.”
This story was originally published July 22, 2016 at 1:10 PM with the headline "Yes, Bluffton, it’s officially ‘Bo Time’ — get ready for Bojangles’."