Stacy Brown, the founder of Chicken Salad Chick, will share her unexpected story of entrepreneurial success at the Chamber’s 2018 Learn Grow Connect Conference for Women next month.
The conference, presented by Nissan North America, Inc, takes place Thursday, Oct 25 8am-3:15pm at Embassy Suites Murfreesboro Hotel & Conference Center, 1200 Conference Center Blvd, Murfreesboro.
Stacy will share how her at-home business turned into a booming restaurant. As she shares on the company website:
I’ve always been on a quest to find the perfect chicken salad. At every restaurant, I would order the chicken salad sandwich. Funny thing is, everyone’s idea of the “perfect” chicken salad is completely different, although it seems we all agree on two key components: chicken and mayonnaise. After tasting every chicken salad I came across and realizing everyone’s idea of the perfect recipe is different, Chicken Salad Chick was born. This is a place all chicken salad lovers can find something they enjoy.
I began working on my original recipe at home and then taste tested on my cooperative, wonderful neighbors. They were kind enough to give me honest feedback while I kept tweaking. Finally, I arrived at a recipe where the consensus was “this is IT.” Thanks to neighbors and the teachers at Ogletree Elementary School, within three weeks there was more business than I could handle. I then formed a partnership with Kevin Brown, my future husband, who had shared this vision with me from the beginning. He had the experience and business sense to turn a recipe into a restaurant.
Business was booming, word was spreading, and the idea of a restaurant was growing, and suddenly the phone rang! On the other end of the line was Stan, from the Lee County Health Department. He said “Stacy, where are you cooking your chicken?” My response: “In my kitchen Stan…is that a problem?” He quickly shared that my at home business was illegal; “you cannot cook anything in your home and sell it.” We had no choice but to “shut down” and our customers were outraged; some even tried to get some smuggled anyway!
Thank you to the anonymous caller that turned us into the health department. You really lit the fire under Kevin to turn this idea into a restaurant sooner than ever! Opening Chicken Salad Chick has been a collaborative effort.
Registration is $70 for Rutherford County Chamber members, $85 for future members. Advance Registration is required by October 19. Register here.
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