The CEO of Dave’s Hot Chicken Says Speed Is No Longer the Point of Fast Food: ‘It’s Not 1999’

The “fast” in fast food is outdated. “It’s not 1999,” Jim Bitticks, CEO of Dave’s Hot Chicken, told QSR Magazine. “Nobody is going through a drive-thru because they’re in a hurry. If they’re in a hurry, they’re mobile ordering.”

He speaks from experience. When Dave’s opened a drive-thru location and told waiting customers they could come inside with no line, they declined, preferring to sit in their cars watching TikTok. Convenience, not speed, is the draw. Bitticks says pushing staff to move quicker hurts quality and sales.

What actually drives sales, in his view, is product buzz. Dave’s recent fried-mozzarella launch, Hot Mozz, flipped same-store sales from down 9% to up 30% in three days and sold out so fast the company ran dry for a month. The former CEO called to congratulate Bitticks, telling him a product shortage is “one of the great achievements in marketing.” For a chain that grew 58% last year, that’s hot.

The “fast” in fast food is outdated. “It’s not 1999,” Jim Bitticks, CEO of Dave’s Hot Chicken, told QSR Magazine. “Nobody is going through a drive-thru because they’re in a hurry. If they’re in a hurry, they’re mobile ordering.”

He speaks from experience. When Dave’s opened a drive-thru location and told waiting customers they could come inside with no line, they declined, preferring to sit in their cars watching TikTok. Convenience, not speed, is the draw. Bitticks says pushing staff to move quicker hurts quality and sales.

What actually drives sales, in his view, is product buzz. Dave’s recent fried-mozzarella launch, Hot Mozz, flipped same-store sales from down 9% to up 30% in three days and sold out so fast the company ran dry for a month. The former CEO called to congratulate Bitticks, telling him a product shortage is “one of the great achievements in marketing.” For a chain that grew 58% last year, that’s hot.