Restaurant

COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS — College Station-based Layne’s Chicken Fingers has signed a franchise agreement to open 44 new units across Texas. Developer Eli Cohen will operate the restaurants. As part of the agreement, Cohen’s team plans to open multiple new Layne’s locations in Lubbock, with two sites already confirmed. In addition to the deal with Cohen, Layne’s has also executed a 12-unit deal with a Wendy’s operator in the Rio Grande Valley; an eight-unit deal with a former water bottling entrepreneur in West Central Texas; and a four-unit agreement with a hospitality professional in South Fort Worth. Layne’s has also recently opened new restaurants in Mission Bend, Tyler and Nacogdoches, with five additional locations expected to open across Texas before the end of the year.

FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Atlanta-based Smalls Sliders has signed a franchise agreement to open five new units, dubbed “cans,” in North Fort Worth. Local development group Slidin Thru LLC will operate the new locations. Smalls Sliders has recently opened additional units in Texas, including El Paso, Tomball, Willis and Arlington. Founded in 2019, Smalls Sliders currently has 375 cans open or under development across 30 states.

THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS — Fort Worth-based owner-operator Trademark has welcomed seven new tenants to Market Street — The Woodlands, a mixed-use development located about 30 miles north of Houston. Jewelers David Yurman and gorjana, as well as women’s apparel brand Draper James, children’s clothing retailer Pink Chicken, Love Shack Fancy and Local Public Eatery, all opened their doors this fall. Fragrances provider Le Labo is set to open early next year.