Franchising

The Red Chickz adding 18 units in Texas, California

May 9, 2022

The Red Chickz, a Nashville Hot Chicken concept, has signed deals this year to open 18 units and has over a dozen more in the pipeline for Houston, as well as Los Angeles, San Diego, Long Beach, Fresno and Orange County.

"We could not be happier to expand and share our unique take on Nashville Hot Chicken with more hungry customers in California and Texas," Shawn Lalehzarian, founder of The Red Chickz, said in a company press release. "The response to our mouth-watering content on Tik Tok has been overwhelmingly positive, with many users begging us to open locations in their cities, and we are so proud to have found franchise partners who will help us do just that."

Lalehzarian, an Iranian immigrant who learned English by working in many different roles in the restaurant industry, founded the chain in 2018, after landing his first senior management position at an international food and beverage company. Equipped with expert industry knowledge and experience from overseeing food and beverage operations for well-known brands like Wolfgang Puck, Starbucks, Pinkberry, California Pizza Kitchen, and Chili's, as well as playing a key role in opening 40 restaurants across North America, he said he knew what had to be done to make his own business successful.

"When I first came up with the concept for The Red Chickz, I knew I had the tools from working with many national brands to open multiple locations, but the popularity on social media and strong demand for our food helped us realize that we could expand sooner than originally planned," he said. "We are so thankful for the love and support we have received so far and we can't wait to bring our concept to cities across the nation and beyond."