Feature Story Outline

Samantha Heckathorn

Caterinicchia

Comm 422 Feature Story Outline

My feature story about the lack of IHOPs in Columbus has started off with some difficulty. After researching articles on IHOP’s website, I found an IHOP newswire from July 20, 2006 that stated that IHOP would be opening 26 new stores in the 12 years following. The newswire said that franchisee Scott Womack would be opening 17 new IHOPs in the Dayton and Columbus areas.

Scott Womack is the owner of Womack Restaurants that is based out of Terre Haute, Ind. and owns eight IHOPs in Indiana. Womack opened the first IHOP of Ohio in Chillicothe in Oct. 2008. He opened another in Lancaster, Ohio in Sept. 2009. The Womack Restaurants website also says that Scott Womack owns the rights to the IHOP franchise in 33 counties surrounding Columbus and Dayton. However, the website’s copyright date is 2007 and I’m guessing that’s the last time it was updated.

After clicking on the “contact” tab on Womack Restaurants website, I discovered that they have no phone number, only a fax number. They have a form you can fill out to send a message, which I did last week and have yet to hear back on it. I actually just had the idea to look up Womack Restaurants on yellowpages.com, and I got an actual phone number. So I will try calling that tomorrow. If I can get a hold of Mr. Womack, I will ask him how his plans have developed since the newswire that came out in 2006, and how soon we can expect to see an IHOP in Columbus. I would also like to know what has caused the delay, if the poor economy has been what is holding the development back.

As far as the direction of my paper, I think I’m going to put a student spin on the article by asking them how they feel about the lack of an IHOP in Columbus, and where they go to find the best pancakes. I also want to ask them what times of the day they like to get breakfast, and see how many students enjoy getting breakfast late at night (since IHOP is open 24 hours a day, I’ll ask them if they would go to an IHOP at night if there was one close to campus). I’ve looked up contact information for Hang Over Easy, Eggfast, Bread And Better, Jack and Benny’s, and Rise and Dine—all breakfast restaurants close to campus. Eggfast is even open 24/7 to cater to the college student crowd. I know Hang Over Easy and Eggfast are generally new to the campus area…new since I’ve been here for the past three years, anyway. I want to get some general information about their businesses, figure out how well they’ve been doing since they’ve been open, and what kind of specials and menu items they offer to keep students coming back. I also want to ask them specifics to their pancakes, and whether they think the pancakes could compete if an IHOP were placed in Columbus. From reading reviews on Jack and Benny’s, I heard they have a menu item called “buckeye pancakes.” I’m curious to find out what these are and how popular they are.

I only have a facebook account, so I searched on there for groups about the lack of IHOPs in Columbus. One group, called "Bring IHOP to Columbus, OH", has 320 members. The creator, Mandy Lux, claims that Columbus is one of the fattest cities in American and therefore a good place for an IHOP. I want to get in contact with her to ask her where she got her information or why she thinks that Columbus is one of the fattest cities. I read all the posts by members, and one man commented that there used to be an IHOP at the corner of Lane and High. I sent him a message on facebook, asking him what else he knew about this and if I could get some contact info from him to interview him. A man named Zane Lalli claims that there is an IHOP in Columbus. I know this isn't correct, but I want to get in touch with him and see why he thought so.

I’m also choosing the option of writing a 600-word story paired with a 90-second broadcast for my final project. Now that I’ve configured all my ideas and general interview questions, I have to get out there and get my interviews done this weekend.