Booming Chicken Chain to Open a Whopping 1,000 New Restaurants
A popular restaurant chain known for its Nashville-style hot chicken and celebrity investors has only been in business for a few years after starting out as a popup eatery in 2017. However, the young brand is already growing at a breakneck speed with plans to open hundreds of new stores.
Dave's Hot Chicken had a fantastic 2023 as its sales grew nearly 100%, Restaurant Business Magazine reported, citing data from the market research firm Technomic's annual Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report. The chain's rapid growth was a major factor in those impressive sales gains.
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Dave's grew its total restaurant count by a whopping 76% in 2023, ending the year with 169 locations in the United States. The brand is aiming to end 2024 with 275 restaurants in operation—but its expansion won't stop there.
The brand currently has about 950 new restaurants in development in total. And it wouldn't be too surprising if the chain's pipeline for new openings grows even larger. Dave's is mostly franchised, and its operators continue adding more locations to their development agreements, per Restaurant Business Magazine.
Dave's Hot Chicken President Jim Bitticks told the publication that the chain also has plenty of potential for expansion in nontraditional locations like airports and transit centers.
Dave's existing restaurants are spread throughout 30 states and Washington, D.C., as well as a couple of international markets like Canada, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. A handful of new locations are slated to open in the next couple of weeks in Nampa, Idaho; Franconia, Va.; Apple Valley, Minn.; Chino Hills, Calif.; Pembroke Pines, Fla.; and Long Beach, Calif.
The company is also interested in entering South Korea and is in the final stages of a deal that could bring 50 locations to the United Kingdom starting this year. Customers interested in keeping tabs on Dave's expansion can check the website for details on upcoming store openings.
Dave's is one of many chicken chains that are expanding at a rapid clip right now. After opening a record-breaking 500 new locations in 2023, Krispy Krunchy Chicken is looking to one-up itself with 700 planned store openings this year. Krispy Krunchy Chicken specializes in Cajun-spiced fried chicken and operates quick-service restaurants inside convenience stores, truck stops, and other retailers.
Slim Chickens—known for its tenders, wings, sandwiches, and jar desserts—also has more than 1,200 new restaurants in development and plans to open more than 70 locations in 2024 alone. Raising Cane's, Pollo Campero, Wing Snob, and Bojangles are among the other chicken chains with major expansion plans in the works.
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