Start a Golden Chick Franchise in 2026

2026 Franchise 500 Rank: #77 Ranked #92 last year

Initial investment: $498K - $2.3M

Units as of 2025: 228 9.1% over 3 years

Does your mouth water at the sight of warm, crunchy, golden chicken? Then opening a Golden Chick franchise might be for you!

Golden Chick first opened under the name Golden Fried Chicken in 1967 in San Marcos, Texas. In 1996, the name changed to Golden Chick and new menu items, including golden roasted chicken, were added. There are over 175 Golden Chick outlets across the U.S., with franchise opportunities available in different locations.

Why You May Want to Start a Golden Chick Franchise

Many Golden Chick franchisees consider investing in this company to be a golden opportunity. Golden Chick franchisees come from different backgrounds: there are military veterans, owners with franchise experience, and corporate professionals, each adding unique experiences to their franchises.

Besides the delicious Golden Chick meals that patrons may have come to love, customers tend to enjoy the friendly atmosphere at Golden Chick franchises. The quality service found at Golden Chick may be something that keeps hungry customers coming back for more.

Golden Chick educates its customers on various dining options, potentially allowing you to serve the great tasting chicken via dine-in, drive-thru, delivery, and take-out.

What Might Make a Golden Chick Franchise a Good Choice?

Through the marketing and advertising programs, Golden Chick will likely support you, and the marketing team may inform the community of the products you have to offer. Golden Chick may provide franchisees with support and training during the pre-opening and opening stages of the business. This is usually followed by continued support for your Golden Chick franchise from regional management. The Golden Chick team has decades of experience and is typically happy to help you get your franchise off the ground.

To be part of the Golden Chick team, you should make sure you’re financially ready for an initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. In addition, you should ensure that you do not forget about ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty, and renewal fees. Franchisees will also need to meet the company's set net worth and liquid capital requirements.

How To Open a Golden Chick Franchise

To get started with Golden Chick, you'll first want to evaluate the restaurant market in your current area. Most branches are currently located in southern states or the Midwest. Is your community dying for some fresh, hot chicken?

During the process, a franchise representative will likely provide you with more information about the Golden Chick brand, the opportunity, investment, and timelines as you progress in the process. The franchise representative often provides franchisees with the Franchise Disclosure Document, as well.

This may be a great time to come prepared with questions and concerns. You'll want to ask to speak with existing Golden Chick franchisees, as well. If your net worth and available liquid capital match the brand’s requirements, you may qualify to open a Golden Chick franchise, and you can get started with an initial investment. When it comes to serving up chicken, are you ready to go for the gold?

Company Overview

About Golden Chick

Industry	Food
Related Categories	Chicken
Founded	1967
Parent Company	Golden Franchising Corp.
Leadership	Mark Parmerlee, CEO
Corporate Address	1131 Rockingham, #250 Richardson, TX 75080
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok

Business Overview

Franchising Since	1972 (54 years)
# of employees at HQ	35
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises in the following US states: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
# of Units	228 (as of 2025)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Golden Chick franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$30,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$497,500 - $2,324,300
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$1,000,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$350,000
Veteran Incentives Definition: A discount or other incentive offered to military veterans who buy a franchise with this company.	33.3% off franchise fee
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	4%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	2%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	20 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Financing Options

Some franchisors offer in-house financing, while others have relationships with third-party financing sources to which they refer qualified franchisees.

Third Party Financing	Golden Chick has relationships with third-party sources which offer financing to cover the following: franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, payroll

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	98-168 hours
Classroom Training	27-28 hours
Ongoing Support	Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Lease Negotiation Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	No
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
# of employees required to run	12-15
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	Yes