Operations

Ovation secures $3M in funding led by customers

Photo: Ovation

February 10, 2026

Summarize withChatGPTGrokPerplexityClaude

Ovation, a guest experience and operations platform for multi-unit restaurants, has raised $3 million in a funding round backed entirely by its own customers.

The round brings Ovation's total funding to $12 million. Unlike traditional venture capital rounds, the capital was provided by nearly a dozen restaurant owners and operators who currently use the platform to manage guest feedback, online reviews, and store operations.

Zack Oates, founder and CEO of Ovation, said the round was not part of an original plan to raise capital but developed organically through user interest.

"When the people using your product every day choose to invest their own money, that's the ultimate validation," Oates said in the release. "It tells us we're building something that truly matters to operators."

Operator-driven investment

The investors include leaders from several prominent fast-casual brands. Jim Bitticks, CEO of Dave's Hot Chicken, said his decision to invest was based on the platform's ability to resolve issues before they result in lost business.

"Ovation doesn't feel like another piece of restaurant tech — it feels like a partner," Bitticks said in the release

Kyle Archer, owner and CFO of Elevated Inc.— the largest franchisee of Cheba Hut — echoed that sentiment, noting the platform provides real-time insights that allow for immediate action at the store level.

Future growth and innovation

The Salt Lake City-based company plans to use the new funds to:

• Accelerate product innovation.
• Expand AI-driven guest insights.
• Develop tools aimed at converting feedback into measurable revenue.

Ovation services more than 1,000 brands, including Swig, The Great Greek and Mooyah. The company positions itself as a hospitality-first organization, emphasizing human connection over traditional software-as-a-service (SaaS) models.

Included In This Story

---

Ovation

How Great Restaurants Get Better - Guest Experience Management Platform

Ovation is a guest experience platform for multi-unit restaurants that starts with a 2-question survey to drive revenue, streamline guest recovery, and easily improve operations. Thousands of restaurants, including leading brands like Dave's Hot Chicken, use Ovation to get more feedback, recover guests in real-time, and improve.

Request Info

Learn More