Philadelphia-based Love & Honey Fried Chicken is moving to enter Massachusetts for the first time, formally soliciting franchise partners to develop locations across at least six priority markets in the state, the fast-casual chain announced September 23. The push follows the brand's recent opening in Cranston, Rhode Island — its first foray outside its Pennsylvania home base and New York — and signals a deliberate, market-by-market approach to Northeast expansion.
Target Markets
The brand's Massachusetts development map spans Greater Boston and its suburbs, Cambridge, Somerville, Worcester, Springfield, and the South Shore and North Shore corridors. That geographic spread reflects a strategy of balancing dense urban trade areas with growing regional cities where premium fast-casual competition remains thinner than in core metro corridors. Founded in Philadelphia in 2017, Love & Honey has positioned itself around hand-dredged fried chicken prepared fresh to order, scratch-made sauces, and Halal-certified chicken raised without antibiotics and sourced through Coleman Farms. A national supply agreement with Sysco underpins the consistency the brand will require as unit count scales.
Franchise Economics
To attract experienced operators, Love & Honey is offering a $5,000 discount on the initial franchise fee for veterans, alongside multi-unit incentives for operators committed to developing more than one location. The brand is explicitly targeting multi-unit franchisees rather than single-unit owner-operators — a common growth posture among emerging fast-casual concepts that need proven execution muscle to maintain brand standards across geographies. "Massachusetts is a natural step for Love & Honey as we continue building our footprint across the East Coast," said Laura Lyons, Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Love & Honey Fried Chicken. "We have seen how guests in New York, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania have connected with the brand, and we believe the same quality, warmth, and sense of community will resonate with guests across Boston and the surrounding communities."
Why Massachusetts, Why Now
The Massachusetts fast-casual market has proved resilient to broader restaurant-sector headwinds, driven by a dense population of higher-income, food-literate consumers in Greater Boston and a university demographic that indexes heavily toward branded, quality-focused quick-service. Geoff Goodman, President of Love & Honey Fried Chicken and a Boston native, argued the market's standards work in the brand's favor. "Massachusetts guests won't settle for anything less than great food and a real sense of community," Goodman said. "We are looking for franchise partners who understand that successful growth is about more than opening restaurants." The fried chicken fast-casual segment has attracted significant investment over the past several years, with established players and emerging concepts alike competing for franchisee capital and real estate. Love & Honey's differentiation play — chef-driven technique, Halal sourcing, and a community-hospitality positioning — aims to carve a distinct niche in a crowded chicken-concept landscape. Operators interested in the Massachusetts franchise opportunity can find development and financial disclosure information at loveandhoneyfranchise.com.
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 Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
