Chicken Salad Chick climbed to No. 158 on the Franchise Times Top 400 thanks to a 13 percent sales increase. The chicken salad franchise ended 2024 with $398 million in system sales and 288 stores.
The chicken category pulled in nearly $80 billion in sales last year, up 6 percent from 2023, according to Franchise Times Top 400 data.
Chick-fil-A saw its sales growth moderate to an estimated 5.3 percent after a 15 percent jump in 2023.
“The chicken category is probably the hottest thing going right now,” said Huey Magoo CEO Andy Howard. “There’s still room for us. Huey Magoo’s is standing tall.”
Chicken is taking over menus in the United States. Whether it’s wings, tenders or even chicken salad, chicken-focused brands are experiencing significant growth, as shown by data from the newly released Franchise Times Top 400, an exclusive ranking of the largest franchise brands by systemwide sales.
The chicken category pulled in nearly $80 billion in sales last year, up 6 percent from 2023.
A huge chunk of the $80 billion came from KFC as the Yum Brands-owned company finished last year with $34.5 billion in systemwide sales. That’s just a 1.7 percent increase, even as the brand added more than 2,000 units, a 7 percent increase year over year as it ended 2024 with 31,981 restaurants.
Chicken Salad Chick climbed to No. 158 on the Top 400 ranking thanks to a 13 percent sales increase. The chicken salad franchise ended 2024 with $398 million in system sales and 288 stores. It crossed the 300-unit mark this year.
Last year was a record year for Chicken Salad Chick, in terms of franchise signings, Deviney said. But those inquiries aren't coming from a change in strategy. Instead, it's organic growth that comes with entering new communities, he said.
“We did not change anything of our strategy,” CEO Scott Deviney said. “What the guest is craving is freshly made, something different—and we’re a differentiated product because we’re not on every street corner.”
At Slim Chickens, a tender-focused brand, Chief Strategy and International Officer Sam Rothschild said brand growth comes from its marketing initiatives.
“We’re very conscientious to the fact of what’s going on with the consumer,” Rothschild said. “There’s always this talk these days about where are you at on the whole value equation. For me, it’s always been quality service over pricing equals value, because it’s about the entire experience in the restaurant. So we look at that.”
The Arkansas-based brand boosted its systemwide sales by 23.4 percent, to $570 million, and added 37 restaurants to its unit count.
Slim Chickens boosted its systemwide sales by 23.4 percent, to $570 million, and added 37 restaurants to its unit count.
Related: Franchise Times Top 400 Reveals the Biggest Brands in Franchising
New on the list this year is No. 280 Huey Magoo’s, which increased sales by 24.3 percent, to $137 million. CEO Andy Howard said the performance is driven by serving “the greatest tenders ever created on this Earth.”
Many of Huey Magoo’s executives came over from another chicken chain, Wingstop, including Howard, who was its chief marketing officer for nine years.
He and his partners bought Huey Magoo’s about a decade ago.
“We got our arms around the brand and did a lot of cleaning up … to get it franchisable,” Howard said.
Huey Magoo’s franchisees are typically experienced multibrand operators who can take their pick of store formats, including inline, drive-thru and second-generation real estate or nontraditional locations in casinos, college campuses or stadiums, Howard said.
The popularity of chicken in recent years could be considered a headwind, with supply chain problems and an overwhelming number of chicken restaurants. But Howard doesn’t see it that way.
“The chicken category is probably the hottest thing going right now,” he said. Customers are demanding boneless chicken and there is strong competition in that sector. “There’s still room for us. Huey Magoo’s is standing tall.”
For Bojangles, technology upgrades are improving sales. The company reported $1.8 billion in sales systemwide in 2024 with 825 restaurants.
“Innovation continues to be a major driver for us,” said Brooks Speirs, vice president of franchise sales for Bojangles. “In 2024, we rolled out Bo-Linda, our AI-powered drive-thru assistant, across more restaurants to improve speed, accuracy and order efficiency, and enhance the guest experience for our franchisees.”
Bojangles regularly collaborates with franchisees to ensure smooth rollouts of menu items, technology or other updates.
Bojangles reported $1.8 billion in sales systemwide in 2024 with 825 restaurants.
“Our job is to provide the systems, technology and support that give franchisees the best opportunity to grow sales in their markets,” Speirs said.
More saucy tidbits
Chick-fil-A, still a darling in the category, saw its sales growth moderate to an estimated 5.3 percent after a 15 percent jump the prior year. Kown for its hospitality and signature sauce, Chick-fil-A did an estimated $23.5 billion in systemwide sales last year.
Just one brand in the chicken category, Wings & Rings, reported a sales decline.
Dave’s Hot Chicken is on a major expansion kick and is the top percentage sales gainer. The company grew sales by $230 million in 2024, or 56.6 percent, and added 79 net new locations. That expansion is set to continue after Roark Capital bought the chain in June, at which point it had 315 stores—already a jump of more than 50 units since year-end 2024.
No. 291 Wings Etc. broke into the 200s on the list, up from No. 311 last year. System sales for the chicken wing brand were up 8.8 percent, to $128 million. Its average unit volume for 2024 was $1.56 million.
Church’s Chicken, which goes by Texas Chicken internationally, is No. 55. The company reported $1.6 billion in systemwide sales in 2024, an increase of $165 million or 11 percent year over year. That’s after the brand grew sales by 12.5 percent in 2023.
Church’s has not increased its prices recently, so that 11 percent sales growth comes from an increase in traffic, which Gonzalez said is up 4 to 5 percent.
Doing all this without raising prices is an impressive feat, and it’s almost unheard of today with heightened labor costs, inflation rates, tariffs and an uncertain economy.
“When prices would go down, we would lock in those prices for six or 12 months ahead, so our franchisees knew what to expect,” Gonzalez said. “Then if we run a promotion, we don’t have any other variables that surprise us. That’s been really important.”