474: What It Takes to Launch a Chick-fil-A Franchise w/ Kareem Edwards

Side Hustle Pro

Nicaila Matthews Okome | Side Hustle Pro Media

Blackpodcast, Sidehustlepro, Blackwomenownedbusiness, Entrepreneurship, Nicailamatthewsokome, Blackentrepreneurs, Sidehustleshow, Smallbusinessshow, Smallbusinessowners, Smallbusinesspodcast, Marketing, Sidehustle, Blackownedbusiness, Blackwomenentrepreneurs, Business, Sidehustles, Businesspodcast, Blackwomen

4.7 • 1.8K Ratings

🗓️ 6 August 2025

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week in the guest chair we have Kareem Edwards, one of the very first men to grace the Side Hustle Pro guest chair! Hailing from Far Rockaway, Queens, Kareem got his start in major corporate roles at Lehman Brothers, Kraft Heinz, and Google—all while dreaming of owning a business. Kareem decided to pursue franchising and balanced a 9-to-5 at Google while working nights at a Chick-fil-A to master the day-to-day operations.

In this episode she shares:

The importance of community impact, creating an empowering work culture, and leading with empathy
Key lessons on staffing, building trust, and innovating with different revenue channels
The art of balancing grit and grace when trying to grow your business

Highlights include:

00:00 Intro

03:00 Early career in finance

09:00 Discovering Chik-Fil-a franchising

17:00 Choosing the right location

25:00 Opening during a pandemic

34:00 Staffing strategies

43:00 Leaving a steady paycheck

46:00 Expanding sales methods

52:00 Tips for entrepreneurs

Check out episode 474 of Side Hustle Pro podcast out now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube

Links mentioned in this episode

Kareem’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kareemjedwards/
Kareem’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kareemedwards
Posse Foundation: https://www.possefoundation.org/
Chick-fil-a Franchising: https://www.chick-fil-a.com/franchising
Chat GPT: https://chat.openai.com/
Uncle Nearest: https://unclenearest.com/

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Transcript

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0:00.0	But Chick-fil-A is especially unique in, um, not, brother, what?
0:06.3	What's going on?
0:06.9	Are you pouring some water by your microphones?
0:10.6	Get a little plunge.
0:12.7	Go ahead, take a sip.
0:14.1	I'll take a sip of my tea.
0:16.0	All right, cool.
0:18.6	You're listening to Side Hustle Pro, the podcast that teaches you to build and grow your side hustle from passion project to profitable business.
0:27.4	And I'm your host, Nikaela Matthews Okome.
0:30.1	So let's get started.
0:32.7	Hey, friends, hey, welcome, welcome back to the show.
0:36.1	It's Nikaela here.
0:38.5	And today in the guest chair,
0:44.7	I am so excited to bring you this conversation with Kareem Edwards. Kareem is not only a dear friend, but he is just an inspirational side hustler turned full-time entrepreneur. And yes,
0:50.6	by the way, surprise. This year, I am introducing some special conversations with some inspirational men side hustlers in my circle who I know can impart such amazing wisdom with everyone.
1:06.9	So first up is Kareem, and let me share a little bit of his background.
1:11.0	Kareem Edwards is a native New Yorker, born and raised in Far Rockaway Queens.
1:15.7	From a young age, Kareem has always been determined to better his life and the lives of those around him.
1:22.3	He is a first-generation scholar, and after college, he returned to NYC to begin his career on Wall Street.
1:30.1	Working at Lehman Brothers, Investment Bank, and after several successful years in financial services,
1:36.5	Kareem was even recognized by Crane's Chicago business as a part of its inaugural 20 in their
1:43.0	20s, a list of outstanding 20-somethings who are integral
	...

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