Who Owns Dave’s Hot Chicken? The Founders, Drake and Roark Capital
Dave’s Hot Chicken started with four friends, a few folding tables and a fryer in a parking lot. Today it has more than 500 restaurants. So who owns Dave’s Hot Chicken now? The short answer: a private equity firm called Roark Capital holds the majority, but the founders, the early investors and a few famous names still have a piece of it.
Here’s how the ownership changed over the years, where Drake fits in, and what any of it means the next time you order.
This is an independent, informational guide and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Dave’s Hot Chicken. Ownership details come from public reporting and company announcements.
The Quick Answer
Roark Capital, the Atlanta firm that also owns Subway, bought about 70% of Dave’s Hot Chicken in June 2025. The deal valued the chain at around $1 billion. The rest is still held by the people who built it: the four co-founders, the investor group led by Bill Phelps and John Davis, and celebrity backers such as Drake.
| Who | Role | Stake (as reported) |
|---|---|---|
| Roark Capital | Majority owner since 2025 | About 70% |
| Bill Phelps and John Davis | Led the early investor group | Largest shareholders before the sale, roughly equal stakes |
| Four co-founders | Started the brand in 2017 | About 10% each before 2025, most of it sold to Roark |
| Drake | Celebrity investor since 2021 | Minority stake, size never disclosed |
| Franchisees | Own and run most local restaurants | Their own stores, not the parent company |
The Four Friends Who Started It
In May 2017, Dave Kopushyan, Arman Oganesyan and brothers Tommy and Gary Rubenyan pooled about $900 and started selling Nashville-style hot chicken from a parking lot in East Hollywood. The lines got long fast, and they opened their first real restaurant the following year.
Yes, there is a real Dave. Dave Kopushyan is the chef behind the recipe, and he is still the company’s chief culinary officer. Arman Oganesyan is the chief brand officer. We cover the early days in more detail on our About page, so we’ll keep this part short.
The Investors Who Turned It Into a Chain
While Dave’s still had just one location, the founders sold half of the business for $2 million to a group led by Bill Phelps, a co-founder of Wetzel’s Pretzels, and John Davis, a Hollywood film producer. That group knew how to franchise a restaurant brand, and it started selling franchises in 2019.
Other names joined that investor group too, including actor Samuel L. Jackson, former NFL player Michael Strahan, Boston Red Sox chairman Tom Werner and journalist Maria Shriver. By the time Roark showed up, Phelps and Davis were the biggest shareholders, with roughly equal stakes. Forbes reported that both made around 250 times their original investment.
Does Drake Own Dave’s Hot Chicken?
Drake owns part of it, but not most of it. He bought a minority stake in September 2021, when Dave’s had fewer than two dozen locations. At the time, he was described as one of its largest individual investors. In his own words, he “jumped at the opportunity to invest” after meeting the founders.
What nobody has made public is how big his stake is or what he paid for it. It’s also not known whether he sold any shares in the 2025 deal. Any number you see online for “Drake’s share” is a guess, not a reported figure.
The 2025 Roark Capital Deal
On June 2, 2025, Roark Capital announced it was buying a majority of Dave’s Hot Chicken. Reports put the price at around $1 billion, with Roark taking about 70%. At that point the chain had roughly 315 restaurants and close to $617 million in U.S. sales for 2024.
Roark is one of the biggest owners in fast food. Besides Subway, which it bought in 2023 for more than $9 billion, it owns Inspire Brands (the parent of Arby’s and Dunkin’), GoTo Foods and Culver’s. Dave’s wasn’t folded into any of those groups, though. It runs as its own company inside Roark’s portfolio.
A few details from the deal show how it was split up:
- Each co-founder owned about 10% before the sale and sold roughly 80% of that stake. They kept the rest, and together they also own seven Dave’s franchise locations.
- Bill Phelps sold about half of his shares and kept the rest.
- Staff at the support center, all the way down to store managers and assistant managers, got a bonus worth about a year’s salary once the sale closed.
Who Runs Dave’s Hot Chicken Today
The leadership team mostly stayed after the sale. In 2026, Jim Bitticks, who had been president and chief operating officer for more than five years, took over as CEO. Bill Phelps became executive chairman and kept his equity. Dave Kopushyan and Arman Oganesyan are still in their roles.
Bitticks has also talked openly about taking Dave’s public, possibly within three to five years of the Roark deal. That’s the same path Roark took with Wingstop back in 2015. For now, though, Dave’s Hot Chicken is still a private company, so you can’t buy its stock.
Who Owns the Dave’s Near You?
Almost certainly a franchisee, not the company itself. Dave’s is almost entirely franchised, which means local business owners buy the rights to open and run restaurants in an area. Some of them are well known. Former NBA player Kris Humphries, for example, opened Minnesota’s first Dave’s in Minnetonka in 2023 and planned more than a dozen more around the state.
This is also why prices can be a little different from one city to the next. Franchisees follow the same recipes and spice levels, but local costs play a part. You can compare typical prices on our Dave’s Hot Chicken menu with prices page, or check what’s close to you on our locations guide.
Did Anything Change for Customers?
On the plate, not really. The menu still centers on tenders and sliders, and the seven spice levels run from No Spice to Reaper, the same as before. Roark’s money mostly shows up in how fast the chain is growing. Dave’s opened its 500th restaurant in Phoenix on October 8, 2026, about 100 restaurants after hitting 400 earlier in the year. It has also signed deals to open more locations in the U.K., Ireland and across Europe, and it’s adding spots in airports and on college campuses.
If you live somewhere that doesn’t have a Dave’s yet, that growth is the part that will matter most to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who owns Dave’s Hot Chicken now?
Roark Capital owns the majority, about 70%, after its 2025 purchase. The co-founders, the Phelps and Davis investor group, and celebrity investors such as Drake still hold the remaining shares.
Is Dave’s Hot Chicken owned by Subway?
No. Subway and Dave’s Hot Chicken have the same owner, Roark Capital, but they are separate companies with separate menus and teams.
How much of Dave’s Hot Chicken does Drake own?
Nobody outside the company knows. Drake bought a minority stake in 2021, and neither he nor Dave’s has said how large it is.
Who is the Dave in Dave’s Hot Chicken?
Dave Kopushyan, one of the four co-founders. He developed the recipe and is still the chief culinary officer.
Is Dave’s Hot Chicken a franchise?
Yes. Nearly all of its restaurants are owned and run by franchisees, while the parent company handles the brand, the recipes and new locations.
Can you buy Dave’s Hot Chicken stock?
Not yet. Dave’s Hot Chicken is a private company. Its CEO has said an IPO could happen within a few years, but nothing has been announced.
Sources: Forbes, Restaurant Business, Nation’s Restaurant News, LAmag, Restaurant Business (CEO change), PR Newswire (500th restaurant).