As of Tuesday, Sept. 27, the former Arby’s at 4740 Showcase at Perkins and I-240 is officially Memphis’ first drive-thru Lenny’s. There model comes after the sub sandwich shops’ drive-thru locations in both Arkansas and Mississippi.
The idea came about when franchisee James Kelly, who currently has 10 locations in the Memphis area, noticed a loyal following paired with decreasing traffic at his Mall of Memphis store. He calls that the “people side†of the equation.
“We wanted to reinvest in this (Showcase) location for our customers’ sake, to make it more convenient and a better environment to give them the deli-fresh experience,†Kelly said.Then there’s the “business side,†where it made sense to snatch up the second-generation drive-thru space while investing in the area.