Todd Graves (entrepreneur)
Todd Graves (born 1972) is an American entrepreneur and founder of Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers, a fast food restaurant company that specializes in fried chicken finger meals. Graves, along with Craig Silvey, founded the first restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1996.
Todd Graves | |
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Born | 1972 (age 50–51) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
Education | University of Georgia[1] |
Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, Restaurateur |
Office | Co-founder and CEO of Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers |
Term | 28 August 1996 – present |
Children | 2 |
Early life
Graves was born in New Orleans and raised in Baton Rouge. Graves graduated from Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. [2]
Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers
Graves and long time friend Craig Silvey used Silvey's business plan course at LSU to create their business plan.[3]
Graves opened Raising Cane's near the North Gates of Louisiana State University on Highland Road in 1996.[3] By 2022 the company expanded to more than 600 restaurants in the U.S. and the Middle East.[4][5]
The restaurants are named after Raising Cane I, Graves’ dog at the time of the founding of the first restaurant. They are headquartered in Baton Rouge.[3]
Personal life
Graves and his wife, Gwen, have two children and reside in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with their yellow Labrador, Raising Cane III.[6]
Collections

An avid collector, Graves has loaned a 66-million-year-old triceratops skull to the Louisiana Arts and Science Museum.[7] He has also loaned the hearse that carried Martin Luther King, Jr. to exhibits across the country.[8]

References
- "Doggone good chicken".
- "Episcopal School of Baton Rouge holds groundbreaking for field house".
- Sayre, Alan (June 12, 2007). "Finger joint beat the odds on fish turf". Atlanta Constitution. pp. D3. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- "A return to growth". 5 July 2022.
- "Raising Cane's in downtown East Lansing is on the way. Here's where the project stands".
- "Dog Days of Summer: Our tails are wagging for Todd Graves' new shelter pup and the entrants of this year's contest". 3 July 2022.
- Miller, Robin. "There's a 66 million-year-old triceratops in Baton Rouge". The Advocate.
- Miller, Robin. "Hearse that carried the body of Martin Luther King Jr. comes to Baton Rouge". The Advocate.