Church’s Texas Chicken® Appoints Roland Gonzalez as New Chief Executive Officer to Lead Legendary Brand’s Next Phase of Global Growth
Gonzalez Assumes Role Having Been Instrumental in Accelerating Church’s® Transformation as Chief Operations Officer since 2023
ATLANTA– February 21, 2025 – Church’s Texas Chicken®, one of the largest quick-service chicken restaurant chains in the world, has named Roland Gonzalez as its new Chief Executive Officer. With a wealth of experience in the global quick-service restaurant industry, Gonzalez will lead the legendary brand’s next phase of global growth and evolution, having played a key role in its transformation over the last two years as Chief Operations Officer. He succeeds Joe Guith, who was named to the post in 2022.
A highly respected executive with a passion for building and motivating cross-functional teams, Gonzalez brings an extensive track record of driving operational excellence through global business strategies and process improvement, strengthening franchisee partnerships, enhancing guest experiences and expanding brand reach in highly competitive categories and geographic markets. Prior to joining Church’s Texas Chicken®, he held senior leadership roles at major quick-service restaurant brands, including Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes, where he implemented successful global growth strategies and delivered high-impact results across RBI’s portfolio of 20,000+ restaurants.
“Church’s Texas Chicken® has made significant strides toward revitalizing its legendary brand by focusing on delivering outstanding, bold-flavored chicken, enhancing service and value to customers and staying true to our community-oriented roots. We thank Joe for being an important part of the first major phase of our transformation as he moves on to his next chapter,” said High Bluff Capital Partners founder Anand Gowda. “Our priority now is to build on this progress and significantly accelerate our momentum and expansion as we strive to reach $2 billion in system sales within the next few years while maximizing franchisee profitability.
“To that end, we are thrilled to welcome Roland Gonzalez as our new CEO – a visionary leader who already has had a tremendous impact on Church’s® transformation as COO,” he continued. “His deep understanding of the QSR industry, commitment to growth-focused operational excellence and dedication to driving franchisee profitability make him the ideal leader to guide Church’s® through its next major evolution.”
“I am honored to now lead this great brand at a critical inflection point in our growth journey,” said Gonzalez. “With a rich history of quality, bold flavor and being truly invested in the communities we serve, Church’s® holds a special place in the hearts of millions. I look forward to working alongside our talented team and valued franchisee partners to drive innovation, enhance our guest experience and expand our footprint globally. We have only begun to scratch the surface of the tremendous opportunity ahead.”
Gonzalez previously held numerous executive positions and key business operations roles including Executive Vice President for Operations at Virtual Dining Concepts and Head of Global Operations Standards and Strategy at Restaurant Brands International.
About Church’s Texas Chicken® / Texas Chicken™
Founded in San Antonio, TX in 1952 by George W. Church Sr., Church’s Texas Chicken®, along with its sister brand Texas Chicken™ outside of the U.S., is one of the largest quick-service chicken restaurant chains in the world. The brands specialize in Original and Spicy Chicken freshly prepared throughout the day in small batches that are hand-battered and double-breaded, tenders, sandwiches, freshly baked Honey-Butter Biscuits™, and classic, home-style sides—all for a great value. Church’s Texas Chicken® and Texas Chicken™ have more than 1,400 locations in 22 countries and global markets, with system-wide sales of more than $1.5 billion. Owned by High Bluff Capital Partners and FS Investments since 2021, Church’s Texas Chicken® celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2022.
For more information, visit www.churchs.com and texaschicken.com. You can also follow Church’s Texas Chicken® on Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok. For more details on open positions, please visit Church’s Texas Chicken® Careers, Jobs & Applications and franchising opportunities are available at franchise.churchstexaschicken.com or franchise.texaschicken.com.
