At Chicken Salad Chick, we’re proud of our heritage, people, and values of serving others. With our 15-year record of phenomenal freshly-made chicken salad, there’s never been a better time to franchise with Chicken Salad Chick as we continue to expand our growth throughout the United States. Multi-unit franchise owners Blake and Shae Fuller are prime examples of entrepreneurs whose businesses have flourished through their mission to serve others at Chicken Salad Chick. As a husband-wife team from Mississippi, the duo has led their multi-unit businesses with a mindset of servant leadership, a concept that emphasizes service to others over self. This has led their Chicken Salad Chick locations to become hubs of community connections, demonstrating a promising outlook for the future of franchisees who follow suit.

A Journey into Franchising

Blake and Shae Fuller own three Chicken Salad Chick locations in Mississippi. They opened their first location in 2018 and have a deal to develop another location currently in progress, with long-term plans that include additional expansion.

Before their venture into franchising, Shae worked as an elementary school teacher, later choosing to work from home to homeschool the couple’s three children. Blake had a background in the car business but transitioned to working as a food broker in 2008. He had always been passionate about food, cooking, and owning his own restaurant, leading to his discovery of Chicken Salad Chick as a customer. Our brand’s mission and emphasis on family values resonated deeply with Blake and Shae, and they decided to start a new undertaking in serving their communities through delicious, freshly-made chicken salad.

Mindset Matters

Since day one of their business, Blake and Shae’s goal has been to put their employees and customers first. Their faith-based values have served as the cornerstone for how they operate and run their franchises.

In today’s business world, this mentality is not always commonplace. For many entrepreneurs, the desire to grow capital and help oneself often sits at the forefront of business management. Entrepreneur has reported that 80% of an individual’s success is based on their EQ, or emotional intelligence, versus just 20% of their IQ, or intelligence quotient. While being business savvy and having a strong intellect are certainly vital components of running and maintaining a successful enterprise, Blake and Shae’s approach to benefiting others has made all the difference in their business, and in the lives of those in their communities.

Real Community Impact

For Blake and Shae, having an understanding of service, family values, and community impact influenced their approach to running multiple Chicken Salad Chick locations as franchisees.

Over the last several years, the couple has truly lived out their servant-like approach to leadership through impactful community involvement. Recognized as one of 12 notable business people in their state, they have dedicated themselves to raising funds for the fight against cancer through fundraising via the American Cancer Society. Blake and Shae also support the brand’s charitable support for CURE Childhood Cancer through the Chicken Salad Chick Foundation’s Giving Card and other programs throughout the year. With the mission of the Chicken Salad Chick Foundation in mind, Blake and Shae painted their community pink and spearheaded a statewide cancer campaign that generated over $300,000. Blake and Shae’s personal efforts in their stores and communities in Mississippi alone raised nearly $20,000. Proving that "real men do wear pink", they have rightfully earned the title of "Heart of a Champion" in 2023, something they are rightfully proud of. Through their involvement with Chicken Salad Chick, the couple has also collaborated with special needs organizations in their location’s communities, proudly employing individuals with unique abilities that make a highly-positive impact on the Chicken Salad Chick teams they work with, along with the customers who visit.

These genuine efforts do not go unnoticed by the Chicken Salad Chick communities of Mississippi, with multi-unit location sales numbers measurably increasing along with strong customer loyalty. For future brand franchisees, Blake and Shae recommend three key elements to grow a franchise that result in the success they’ve experienced.

Like many go-getting entrepreneurs, they believe in the value of hard work and emphasize the importance of being hands-on while maintaining a hunger for constant learning. Secondly, the couple credit following the established franchise playbook Chicken Salad Chick lays out for best practices, as well as networking with experienced franchise owners as essential components of success. Above all, they firmly believe in pouring their hearts into the brand, leading with a faith-driven approach they consider to be a blessing to their business.

Building stronger communities has been a long-time goal for Blake and Shae, and the impact of their work and involvement is clear. With their fourth Chicken Salad Chick location in the works and future plans for continued expansion, the duo is certainly on the right path to continued success, and for Chicken Salad Chick, we can’t wait to see what they will continue to accomplish with their hearts for servant-leadership.

Are you an entrepreneur considering starting or expanding your franchising journey? Find out why Chicken Salad Chick is the best fit for you today: https://www.chickensaladchick.com/franchising/