One thing about Shaquille O’Neal, he’s going to make a smart business move.
The NBA legend and prolific businessman recently announced the launch of a new installment of his fast-casual restaurant franchise Big Chicken — The latest market it’s tapping is San Antonio, Texas.
Josh Halpern, the CEO of Big Chicken, shared with KSAT-TV that restaurants are expected to start popping up in 2023 or early 2024. This is one part of Big Chicken’s major infusion into Texas’s fast food ecosystem since there are plans to add up to 50 locations across Austin, Dallas, and Houston as well.
“It’s going to take us just a few minutes here to get to San Antonio, but we’re really excited to come to the market,” Halpern said in the interview. “I know Shaquille has a deep personal connection to the market, and I’m sure he’s excited to get in San Antonio as well.”
The restaurant was founded in 2018 by O’Neal and features a major nod to his incredible NBA career including a sandwich named after his longtime colleague and NBA legend Charles Barkley.
Big Chicken currently has stand-alone locations in Los Angeles and Las Vegas as well as arena stands in Seattle and metro New York.
“We’re expanding nationwide. There’s markets that are more authentic to Shaquille for sure, and San Antonio is one of those markets,” Halpern said.
“Big Chicken wouldn’t be growing like it is without the team behind it,” O’Neal said in the release. “My team has done a fantastic job making sure we’re growing in the right way, with the right people. Now, we’re going even BIGGER in Texas and I’m excited to be teammates with Fazil, Frank and Noordin.”