Dave's Hot Chicken
Dave’s Hot Chicken franchises fast-casual restaurants featuring Nashville-style hot chicken tenders and sliders with made-to-order spice levels, along with related food and drink items in a fun dining format. The business model primarily offers multi-unit area development franchises requiring a minimum of three restaurants in a designated area, with options for single-unit franchises in traditional, non-traditional, or food truck formats. It targets multi-unit operators and entrepreneurs in the quick-service restaurant industry seeking high-investment opportunities in spicy chicken concepts.
Franchise Costs
6% royalty + 4% creative fund + $170-$500/week technology & operations fee + $556/mo (food safety assessment, mystery shopper, guest response)
Financial Performance
Item 19 Financial Performance
This franchise did not provide Item 19 financial performance data.
Be careful if you are interested in investing. The lack of financial performance representations may indicate limited data or varying results across franchises.
Extracted Item 19 Section
How Dave's Hot Chicken Compares
Key Insights
- One of the lowest SBA loan default rates in Fast Casual
| Franchise | Investment | Fee | Royalty | Locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Dave's Hot Chicken Current | $618K – $3.2M | $40K | 6.0% | 221 |
| Tropical Smoothie Cafe | $300K – $721K | $35K | 6.0% | 1,371 |
| TROPICAL SMOOTHIE CAFÉ | $300K – $721K | $35K | 6.0% | 1,371 |
| FIREHOUSE SUBS RESTAURANTS (UNIT) | $379K – $1.4M | $20K | 6.0% | 1,248 |
| Zaxby's | $1.4M – $3.8M | $35K | 6.0% | 826 |
| Qdoba | $548K – $1.3M | $40K | 5.0% | 652 |
Fast Casual Average 107 franchises | $532K – $1.2M | $39K | 5.6% | – |
* Comparison based on latest FDD filings. Investment ranges from Item 7, fees from Item 5. Showing top 5 of 107 Fast Casual franchises by location count.
Locations & Growth
Outlet Growth Over Time
Total outlets at end of each year
Geographic Distribution (2024)
Outlets by state across the United States
+22 more states
SBA Loan History
Historical SBA 7(a) loan data for Dave's Hot Chicken franchisees (2023 – 2025)
Loans by Year
SBA 7(a) loan activity over time
* Data sourced from SBA 7(a) FOIA loan records. Default rate calculated from charged-off loans.
Franchisee Contacts
224 franchisee contacts on file from official FDD filings.
| Name | SBA Loan |
|---|---|
John Smith ABC Franchise LLC | $350,000 2023 · Active |
John Smith ABC Franchise LLC | $350,000 2023 · Active |
John Smith ABC Franchise LLC | $350,000 2023 · Active |
John Smith ABC Franchise LLC | $350,000 2023 · Active |
John Smith ABC Franchise LLC | $350,000 2023 · Active |
224 Contacts Available
Unlock all Dave's Hot Chicken franchisee contacts with verified contact information
Due Diligence
Litigation (Item 3)
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
System Health (Item 20)
Franchise system changes reported in the most recent fiscal year
Frequently Asked Questions
The total initial investment to open a Dave's Hot Chicken franchise ranges from $617,800 to $3,218,000. This includes a franchise fee of $40,000. Ongoing royalty fees are 6.0% of gross sales.
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