Free chicken salad for a year is a powerful line to stand in — and on Tuesday, August 4, the first 100 guests in Durham, North Carolina will do exactly that. But for foodservice operators watching the fast casual segment, the real story behind Chicken Salad Chick's newest opening isn't the giveaway. It's the disciplined multi-unit franchise growth quietly compounding in one of the country's most competitive suburban restaurant markets.
The brand — billed as the nation's only fast casual chicken salad restaurant concept — is opening at 6807 Fayetteville Road Suite 120, marking its continued expansion across the Research Triangle.
A Third Location, Built by Proven Operators
Chicken Salad Chick of Durham is owned and operated by multi-unit franchise owners Mike Saccone and John Schuster. The pair opened their first Chicken Salad Chick in Cary in 2020, followed by a Raleigh location. Durham is their third restaurant.
Between them, Saccone and Schuster bring more than 55 years of foodservice experience — including time at The Coca-Cola Company, where both managed partnerships with restaurant concepts. That background matters: these are operators who understand the brand-and-beverage side of the business as well as the four-walls economics of running a store.
"Opening our third Chicken Salad Chick location in the area is an exciting milestone for us," said Mike Saccone, co-owner of Chicken Salad Chick of Durham. "With successful restaurants already thriving in Cary and Raleigh, we're proud to promote our assistant manager, Kate Overpeck, to lead our new Durham location. Our team embodies Chicken Salad Chick's mission, and we're confident Kate will make a meaningful impact in this community. We're thrilled to serve the city of Durham and create new opportunities for our team members as we continue to grow."
That internal promotion — elevating an assistant manager to lead a new store — is a tell. The strongest multi-unit franchise groups grow their next location on the back of their last one's talent pipeline, not by hiring cold.
Grand Opening Week: The Giveaway Calendar
Chicken Salad Chick is leaning into the Southern hospitality it's known for with a full week of specials and giveaways:
- Tuesday, August 4 — Free chicken salad for a year to the first 100 guests. The first guest in line receives one free large Quick Chick per week for a year; the next 99 receive one free large Quick Chick per month for a year.
- Wednesday, August 5 — The first 100 guests who purchase a meal with one side (or equivalent) receive a free Green 20oz Chick Tumbler.
- Thursday, August 6 — The first 50 qualifying guests receive a free Chick Bamboo Cutting Board.
- Friday, August 7 — The first 50 qualifying guests receive a free Chick Tote Bag.
- Saturday, August 8 — The first 50 qualifying guests receive a free Chick Dish Towel plus a meal with one side on their next visit.
Guests should arrive early, remain in line, and download the Chicken Salad Chick app to secure their spot. Rewards for the year-long promotion begin delivering electronically the Monday after Grand Opening Day. Guests must be 16 or older; standard offer restrictions apply.
Menu, Formats, and CEO Perspective
The brand is known for its dozen-plus variety of made-from-scratch chicken salad flavors, alongside fresh sides, gourmet soups, signature sandwiches, and desserts. The new Durham restaurant offers in-restaurant and outdoor patio dining, take-out, third-party delivery, and catering — a multi-channel format that hedges against dayparts and dining-room swings.
"I've had the pleasure of knowing John and Mike for many years through their work with The Coca-Cola Company, so I'm thrilled they continue to franchise and expand with Chicken Salad Chick," said Scott Deviney, CEO of Chicken Salad Chick. "We value their commitment to community and hospitality and are excited to see them bring our brand to the Durham community."
Community Giving Baked In
Giving back is a stated focus for both the Durham team and the broader brand. Chicken Salad Chick established the CSC Foundation to support CURE Childhood Cancer and local food banks through year-round fundraisers. As part of the pre-opening Friends & Family event in Durham, the restaurant will raise money for Duke Children's Hospital, a pediatric facility supporting healthcare advancement for children of all ages.
Chicken Salad Chick of Durham will be open Monday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Why It Matters
For restaurant owners, franchise developers, and foodservice executives, this opening is a clean case study in how fast casual concepts scale profitably today:
- Cluster density wins. Three locations in the Triangle (Cary, Raleigh, Durham) lets one operator share management, catering leads, marketing spend, and brand awareness across a tight geography. If you're evaluating expansion, market clustering beats scattered single units.
- Grow talent, then grow stores. Promoting from within — as with new Durham manager Kate Overpeck — de-risks openings and signals a healthy operator. It's a hiring model worth copying.
- App-gated giveaways build a data asset. Requiring the loyalty app to claim rewards turns a splashy launch into a first-party marketing list. That's the actionable takeaway for any operator planning a grand opening.
- Community giving is strategy, not charity. Tying openings to CURE Childhood Cancer, food banks, and Duke Children's Hospital earns local goodwill and press — a low-cost, high-trust differentiator in a crowded segment.
Chicken Salad Chick has grown to more than 340 restaurants across 24 states, with recognition from Entrepreneur, USA Today, Franchise Times, Fast Casual, QSR, Southern Living, and Technomic. The Durham debut is one more brick in that expansion — and a reminder that in fast casual, operator quality is the moat.
Your Move
Planning your own launch or franchise growth in 2026? Study the playbook here — clustered markets, internal promotions, app-driven loyalty, and community anchoring. For more on franchise strategy, see our roundup of the top full-service restaurant franchises to consider in 2026, and read how operators are rethinking growth in Woodbine Hospitality's strategic growth under new leadership.
Are cluster-based multi-unit openings the smartest way to scale a fast casual brand right now? Weigh in below — we want to hear from the operators in the room.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” for founding American Wholesale Floral. Politz is also the founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
