Franchise to avoid: Chick-fil-A

Hey folks,

On a recent webinar with Nick Huber, someone asked me a spicy question:

Would you accept a Chick-fil-A franchise if it was offered to you?

My answer? Hell no.

And before you start hating on me: yes, I love the chicken. Yes, the culture is world-class. Yes, Truett Cathy is a legend. Plus, me tearing this opportunity to shreds isn’t going to touch their bottom line. 

But I wouldn’t touch this opportunity if they paid me. 

Here’s why.

Problem #1: Chick-fil-A isn’t really a franchise.

Technically, it’s not. Chick-fil-A corporate owns the land, the buildings, the equipment, and even the LLC itself. They retain ownership of everything.

You’re not buying a business. You’re applying for a job.

You pay a $10,000 fee, they front the expenses to build the restaurant, and then you operate it. You get a cut of the profits after corporate takes their slice: a percentage of sales, rent, flat fees for equipment, and more. Then the remaining profits are split 50/50.

Fundamentally, you’re not a business owner — you’re a glorified GM being with a cut of the profits. 

And to be honest… you should not have to pay $10K to go work a job!

Problem #2: You have no options.

If you’ve been reading for a while, you know I look for businesses that give you three paths:

• Exit (selling the business)

• Executive ownership (hiring a manager to take over for you)

• Empire (a clear path to owning more units or other businesses)

(More on the “3E” framework here.)

Chick-fil-A fails on all three.

No exit
You can’t sell it. You can’t pass it on to your kids. You don’t own the asset, so you’re not building enterprise value. When you walk away, you walk away empty-handed.

No executive ownership 
Chick-fil-A operators are expected to be fully immersed in the business. These are people slinging French fries, manning the register. They want to see you in the store, managing the team, shaking hands in the community, building culture. You’re on the clock, and off the clock, you're still on.

No empire
For years, Chick-fil-A operators were limited to a single store. Eventually they started letting the cream of the crop run a second location — and that was considered groundbreaking. (That should not be groundbreaking.) Not to mention, they don’t let you own any other businesses. They want Chick-fil-A to be your only thing.

This is what I call a no-option business. And that’s a landmine.

So… who is Chick-fil-A right for?

Look, if your dream is to run one business, be a pillar in your community, and do great work day-in and day-out, then Chick-fil-A might be one of the best opportunities on the planet. I know a few Chick-fil-A operators personally, and they’re great people.

But that’s not who I’m writing this for.

The people I work with want to create long-term value. They want equity. They want optionality. And they want the freedom to scale or step back.

And that’s what I’m focused on: brands that offer true ownership, strong systems, and paths to scale.

So if you're entrepreneurial by nature, Chick-fil-A is a cage. A well-furnished, profitable cage. But a cage nonetheless.

Need help finding your best-fit franchise? 

If you’re sitting on $250K+ net worth and have at least $100K liquid, you’re ready to jump — book a free strategy call with me. No strings attached.

And if you’re curious about another brand, reply and let me know what you want me to cover next.

Thanks for reading,

Connor

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