Dave’s Hot Chicken Just Made One Move That Signals What’s Coming for the Restaurant Industry

The restaurant industry is watching private equity firms snap up fast-growing chains at billion-dollar valuations.

Now one of those chains just made a leadership change that shows exactly what happens after the deal closes.

And Dave's Hot Chicken just promoted its COO to CEO in a move that tells you everything about where this industry is headed.

Private Equity Takes Control Six Months After Billion-Dollar Deal

Jim Bitticks got promoted to CEO of Dave's Hot Chicken on January 5, seven months after Roark Capital dropped $1 billion to acquire the Nashville-style chicken chain.

Bill Phelps, who built Dave's from a parking lot pop-up into a 400-location empire, stepped aside as executive chairman.

The timing wasn't coincidental.

This is the private equity playbook in action.

Roark doesn't pay billion-dollar valuations to watch the old guard run things the same way.

They bring in operators who know how to scale fast and squeeze out every dollar of efficiency.

Bitticks spent the last five years as Dave's president and COO, which means he already knows the business inside and out.

Phelps praised Bitticks as "a driving force behind the strategic, profitable growth" who built operations across nearly 400 restaurants worldwide.

The Fast Casual Bloodbath Creates Perfect Conditions

The restaurant industry spent 2025 watching fast-casual chains collapse left and right.

Pieology filed bankruptcy.

MOD Pizza warned franchisees its future was in doubt.

Panera admitted it needed a "transformation" after negative transactions for 10 years straight.

Meanwhile, Dave's Hot Chicken posted 56.5% sales growth and nearly 44% unit growth.

Dave's jumped 42 positions in the Franchise Times Top 400, landing at No. 123 with $636 million in global sales.

Roark saw an opportunity to buy a winner while competitors were drowning.

Private equity firms like Roark specialize in franchise operations.

They own Dunkin', Subway, Arby's, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Jimmy John's through holding companies.

When private equity acquires a brand, they plug it into their operational machine and typically start stripping it of value and quality.

Dave's had momentum, but Roark brings international supply chains that cut costs for franchisees and global expansion capabilities.

Phelps said the chain could hit 4,000 locations worldwide in the next decade.

That's aggressive even by private equity standards.

What This Means for Every Restaurant Chain

Bitticks taking over as CEO signals that Roark is ready to shift into high gear.

The "learning period" is over.

Now comes rapid expansion, operational standardization, and margin optimization.

Roark's portfolio generates $97 billion in annual system revenues from 112,000 locations across 121 countries.

They know how to scale brands fast to milk them for all they’re worth.

The PE-backed chains are buying market share, and stripping out value while competitors struggle with inflation, labor costs, and falling traffic.

Sources:

• Lisa Jennings, "Jim Bitticks named CEO of Dave's Hot Chicken," Restaurant Business, January 5, 2026.
• Joe Halpern, "Dave's Hot Chicken Taps New CEO," Franchise Times, January 9, 2026.
• Julie Littman, "Dave's Hot Chicken promotes COO to CEO," Restaurant Dive, January 5, 2026.
• Amelia Lucas, "Private equity firm Roark Capital invests in fast-growing restaurant chain Dave's Hot Chicken," CNBC, June 2, 2025.
• Jonathan Maze, "For many in fast casual, 2025 was painful and a little insulting," Restaurant Business, January 6, 2026.