The Atlanta-based brand had a record-breaking year in 2024 with nearly 40 openings and 88 franchise agreements signed. That represented a 60 percent increase over the previous year. Chicken Salad Chick serves its southern-style chicken salad in 288 restaurants in 20 states.
Chicken Salad Chick set a goal to nearly double its unit count in the next five years. To do so, it’s partnering with existing franchisees to expand.
One of those franchisees is Troy Morrison, the second largest operator in the system. Along with his large portfolio of Taco Bells and Wingstops, Morrison owns 13 Chicken Salad Chick locations.
Morrison, the CEO of the Texas-based restaurant development and shared services management company Meauxmentum Strategies and Investments, entered the system a year and half ago and has since acquired three stores in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and eight in Indianapolis.
Morrison has opened two new stores and plans to expand his Chicken Salad Chick business to 20 locations over the next four years. He has three locations under construction and is planning to open five to six new restaurants per year in Oklahoma, Indiana, Kansas and Texas.
“The loyal fan base, the freshness of the made-from scratch food that travels well and the simple operational efficiencies with an emphasis on drive-thrus. Those are the three things I love about Chicken Salad Chick and the reason we decided to enter the brand,” said Morrison, who owns 63 Taco Bells and 37 Wingstops in seven states.
Morrison is one of 12 groups of franchisees that have chosen to reinvest into Chicken Salad Chick by signing on for an additional 27 restaurants.
MSI, which celebrated opening its 100th restaurant across all of its brands this year, posted $186 million in revenue in 2024. Morrison is projecting a $35 million increase in sales this year across MSI’s restaurant franchisee groups. His latest opening in Pflugerville, Texas, was announced March 14.
Meanwhile, Atlanta-based Chicken Salad Chick had a record-breaking year in 2024 with nearly 40 openings and 88 franchise agreements signed. That represented a 60 percent increase over the previous year. The brand serves its southern-style chicken salad in 288 restaurants across 20 states, which is double the number of stores it had five years ago.
With systemwide sales of $400 million, Chicken Salad Chick increased average unit volumes to $1.5 million, according to its franchise disclosure document. The company is aiming to open about 300 shops by 2029.
Related: Arlington Franchisees Sign 8-Unit Deal With Chicken Salad Chick
Morrison, who said the AUV for his Chicken Salad Chick restaurants is $1.7 million, has been in the restaurant business for most of his life. Prior to restaurant ownership, he spent 25 years with Yum Brands in various positions including development and franchising. He said he started flipping burgers for Dixie Burger as a teen growing up in Louisiana before working for Taco Bell after college.
Other large operators
The husband-and-wife team of Scott and Julie Beville entered the brand in 2013 in South Carolina and are the largest operators in the system with 19 units open followed by Morrison with 13 locations and Hudson Sandefur with nine locations in Mississippi, Tennessee and Arkansas.
Sandefur also owns three Scooters Coffees in Alabama along with 15 Zaxby’s stores.
“Zaxby’s has been great but it does take a lot to produce their hot, fresh product,” said Sandefur. “With Chicken Salad Chick we’re making a lot of it from scratch but it’s a lot less labor intensive and it’s not time sensitive. You can you make it that morning and serve it the rest of the day, so the stress on your staff and on your team seems to be a lot less because it’s just a more relaxed environment. It gives you a lot more time to focus on your guests and to be sure they’re having a good experience.”
Sandefur said he has no immediate plans to add more Chicken Salad Chicks. Instead, he said will focus on improving sales and the profits of his existing locations that do $1.2 million to $1.7 million annually.
Sandefur reports that 40 percent of his Chicken Salad sales comes from drive-thru while his Zaxby’s stores tilt between 65 and 70 percent drive-thru and pickup.