Chicken Salad Chick Grew to 335 Locations. Makayla Ekiss Says Catering Execution Helped Fuel the Expansion

Chicken Salad Chick Grew to 335 Locations. Makayla Ekiss Says Catering Execution Helped Fuel the Expansion

From Digital Hospitality by Shawn P. Walchef

June 12, 2026 · 16 min · Episode 646

About this episode

Makayla Ekiss discusses how Chicken Salad Chick scaled its catering operations to support rapid expansion while maintaining quality.

Makayla Ekiss, leader of off-premise growth at Chicken Salad Chick, shares how the 335-unit brand is scaling catering without sacrificing operations. From moving managers out of delivery vehicles and back into restaurants to building a trusted partnership with DeliverThat, Ekiss explains why execution matters more than marketing when it comes to growing catering sales. She also discusses Chicken Salad Chick's rapid expansion, creating buy-in around off-premise channels, and how great hospitality turns first-time catering customers into lifelong fans.

People in this episode

Host: Shawn P. Walchef

Guest: Makayla Ekiss

Topics covered

  • catering
  • business expansion
  • hospitality
  • operations
  • marketing

Keywords

  • catering execution
  • business growth
  • off-premise channels
  • hospitality
  • Chicken Salad Chick

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Chicken Salad Chick, DeliverThat

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