Dave’s Hot Chicken is a restaurant created in 2017 by Dave Kopushyan, Arman Oganesyan, Tommy Rubenyan, and Gary Rubenyan. According to AfroTech, it offers customers tenders and sliders with flavor profiles ranging from mild to hot, extra hot, and reaper, alongside sides like fries, macaroni and cheese, and kale slaw, among others.
In 2022, it was named the fastest-growing chain in the U.S. It started as a late-night munchies spot in an East Hollywood parking lot in 2017. Today, it has 200 locations in the U.S., with the rights to more than 700 franchise locations in the U.S., Middle East and Canada, according to USA Today.
Since its creation, the company has received backing from notable celebrities, including Drake and former NFL player turned American television host and journalist Michael Strahan. Drake invested in the restaurant after his first bite and found it amazing.
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“I tried the food and it was amazing. After meeting the founders and hearing their story, I jumped at the opportunity to invest,” Drake said, per Bloomberg.
Jackson was also initially reluctant to invest in a restaurant company. “I never thought about going in the restaurant business, but I am an investor in Dave’s Hot Chicken,” Jackson said during an interview on “Sway In The Morning.”
Jackson and Drake are not the only celebrity investors in the chain. Singer Usher is also an investor. In March this year, he revealed his decision to invest in locations across Atlanta in the coming years.
“Dave’s Hot Chicken is some of the best hot chicken I’ve ever had. I’m excited to be involved with the brand, and bring Dave’s delicious tenders and sliders to people across Atlanta,” Usher said in a statement, according to USA Today.
Through the backing of Drake, Jackson, and Usher, among others, Dave’s Hot Chicken has scaled from a $900 investment of a portable fryer and picnic tables in its East Hollywood, CA, location to a big business, according to AfroTech.
The Nashville-style hot chicken chain recently announced that it was opening its first Jacksonville, FL, location and building a 2,697-square-foot space that is projected to cost $250,000, per Jacksonville Daily Record. With locations in Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Detroit, Toronto, Portland, Milwaukee, and more, it is planning to open another 90 locations this year.
