The unique hot chicken concept strengthens its C-Suite as it prepares to grow both corporate and franchise stores nationwide
Houston TX Hot Chicken, one of the fastest-growing hot chicken concepts in the country, today announced the appointment of Brian Simowitz as President.
Simowitz has spent the last 18 years on the franchise support side of the restaurant industry. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Operations for Slim Chickens, which has 300+ locations and where he was responsible for both corporate and franchise growth. Prior to that, he spent eight years on Applebee’s international team growing and supporting the brand in numerous countries. Additionally, he and his wife, Kelly, were owners of several restaurant brands in Minnesota.
“I’m thrilled to join Houston TX Hot Chicken and be part of its exciting rapid growth in the fast-casual segment,” Simowitz said. “I’m truly energized by the great vision of our founder Edmond Barseghian. His passion for delivering bold flavors, great service, and a unique dining experience has perfectly laid the foundation for HHC. I’m excited to work alongside him, as well as collaborate with Andrew K. Smith and the great team from Savory Fund who have a deep expertise in scaling high-growth brands.”
Founded in 2021 by Edmond Barseghian — who is HHC’s Chief Marketing Officer — the brand currently has 20 locations across eight states and 350K+ followers across its social media channels. In 2023, it entered into a strategic growth partnership with Savory Fund, a Utah-based private equity firm that invests into emerging restaurant concepts. HHC now has 300 franchise commitments with plans to have 75 stores open by the end of 2025.
“Brian is a phenomenal talent and an incredible addition to the HHC team,” said Andrew K. Smith, managing director of Savory Fund. “He is adept at both corporate and franchise growth, and he will be able to take this electrifying brand to the next level.”
Known for its hot chicken sandwiches, tenders, salads, soup, waffle shakes, and loaded fries, the unique eatery has seven signature sauces ranging from “No Spice” to “Honey Butter,” to “Liftoff” to “Houston, We Have a Problem!” It has catered to both authenticity and commercial appeal, which has heat-seekers all over the map making HHC a dining destination.
“When we began HHC, we set out to disrupt and dominate the hot chicken industry,” said Barseghian, CMO. “We’re well on our way there, but Brian is just the secret sauce we need to take our journey to the next level. It’s going to be a thrilling ride, and I’m excited to get started.”
Founded in 2021, Houston TX Hot Chicken (HHC) prides itself on serving all-natural and never-frozen chicken to its guests. With a menu that features hot chicken in the form of sandwiches, tenders and more, HHC offers high-quality food alongside an exciting and elevated service standard. In recent years, the restaurant group has experienced rapid growth with locations nationwide in Arizona, California, Nevada, Washington, Texas, Utah, Idaho, Michigan and has plans to continue opening new locations across the country, with the help of its growth partnership with Savory Fund. Learn more at HHC.ooo.
Savory Fund is an innovative private equity firm that combines over $750 million in assets under management with a growth playbook and expertise that has been developed over 15 years of operating in the restaurant industry. Savory partners with high-potential, profitable, emerging restaurant brands, to deliver financial capital, industry expertise, growth and revenue opportunities, profitability enhancements and new location development. The Savory team contributes directly to all aspects of growth and replication by using a proven playbook and methodology. Founder involvement in the expansion of a brand is a central theme of the Savory approach as founders carry the tribal knowledge around the uniqueness that has energized early success and is essential to future growth. The Savory Fund is currently invested in 11 brands: Swig, R&R BBQ, PINCHO, Via 313 Pizzeria, Houston TX Hot Chicken, Mo’ Bettahs Hawaiian Style Food, Saigon Hustle, Hash Kitchen, The Sicilian Butcher, South Block and restaurant tech investment 86 Repairs. For more information, visit SavoryFund.com.
