Barn’rds, a longtime Wichita favorite, tries something new

Wichita’s roast beef sandwich experts didn’t change their popular menu, but they are communicating differently

Barn’rds specializes in Wichita’s best roast beef sandwiches, soups and salads. Founded in 1983, the popular dine-in and drive-through restaurant on north Woodlawn has developed a fiercely loyal following.

For an already successful business, change can be a scary proposition. But for owner Troy Hurdle, investing in something new was one way to help the business do even more of what it already does well. Hurdle worked with Luminous to install an Electronic Message Center (EMC) to replace the old-fashioned changeable copy board in his existing sign.

“We always kind of had a reputation of not changing,” said Hurdle. “But this is kind of out of the box for us.”

And while the prospect of change can be scary, for Hurdle it has proven to be a smart investment.

There’s a log of these signs popping up around town.. and there’s a reason why they’re popping up around town. It’s because they work.”

The old changeable copy board Barn’rds had used for years was no longer generating results.

“I think in the old days, you could put letters up there and people would read them. But as technology has come around, I don’t think those catch your eye anymore. And that’s what we’ve noticed. And that was one of the considerations that we made when we bought this sign.”

Hurdle recognized the long-term value of his investment in an EMC from Luminous.

One thing that’s great about a digital sign is once it’s up there, it’s up there. You spend $10,000 on TV or print… when your budget’s gone, your budget’s gone. This is something you can have up for years.

Hurdle complimented Luminous for helping to maximize the impact of Barn’rds new EMC.

“Luminous has a wonderful support staff. They’ve really helped us in how to program the board, what messages might work better than others, and color combinations.”

It’s incredibly easy to program the sign. I do it from home. It takes a matter of minutes. And believe me — I’m not just saying this — if I can do it, anybody can do it. It’s really true.

For more information about the restaurant, visit the Barn’rds website.