WICHES. EN.
drops in quality. That’s the number one thing everybody’s been worried about.” Adds Kopushyan: “We know quali- ty is what got us here, so, we can never change that.” The three founders, who were joined early on by Gary Rubenyan (Tommy’s brother), are all franchisees of the brand, with several units in Los Angeles. So is Bitticks. They see the brand’s future through the lens of be- ing operators, as well as franchisors. Bitticks would love to see Dave’s Hot Chicken follow the path of Wing- stop, a more than 2,200-unit chain that Roark took public with an initial public offering in 2015, when it had roughly 800 units. Wingstop has had double-digit sales increases in recent years, in part the result of a shift to boneless chicken sandwiches and, of course, chicken ten- ders. The Dallas-based chicken brand is also known for strong returns on in- vestment for franchise operators, but Dave’s $3.1 million average unit vol- ume in 2024 was already well ahead of Wingstop’s $2.1 million. Still, said Bitticks, “We hope we’re the next Wingstop. We hope we’re that story. They sold it when it was at its peak, and it keeps getting bigger and bigger—and better.”
https://vimeo.com/1089367753/4c866d72b9
apparently. The McDonald’s partnership was supposed to represent a glorious return of the brand to a full national stage. In- stead, it has only generated more ques- tions. Of course, It didn’t hurt that the in- vestor group included high-caliber ce- lebrities, like Drake, Samuel L. Jackson and Usher. The restaurants themselves are literal pieces of art, with murals that demand social media posting. And, perhaps most importantly, franchisees are seeing a return on their investment. “I think we proved that the inves- tors and the founders can work really
harmoniously together, and actually, I feel, in some ways improved the brand over time,” Oganesyan said in the vid- eo. Now, Oganesyan, Kopushyan and Rubenyan say they have gotten to know the folks at Roark over the years, he added, not only as a business but as people. “We have that same feeling that, the chemistry between us and them is going to help Dave’s get to that next level. They kind of understand that this brand is special because of the way it’s been run by the people that are behind it. And there certainly won’t be any
JULY 2025 RESTAURANT BUSINESS
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