Hidden Gems: Meet Danielle Jackson of Richie’s Chicken & Soul

Today we’d like to introduce you to Danielle Jackson. 

Hi Danielle, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi, I am Danielle, the daughter of the founder of Richie’s Chicken. My husband, Jelani, and I, presently, own the Richie’s on Colerain Ave. I am going to share with you a little bit of the history of Richie’s and my growing up in the business.

The original Richie’s Chicken was founded in 1986, in Frankfort Ky, by my father Richard “Richie” Bhoolai. Back then, we sold everything from BBQ to Fried Rice, but we were always known for our amazing fried chicken. Business started slowly but started to pick up once people tried the spicy fried chicken. In 1989 the business moved to Lexington, KY and finally to Cincinnati, OH, in 1991, where the headquarters has remained ever since. The first location in Cincinnati, was Bond Hill, followed shortly by the other locations.

I have been around and in the business since a child. My first job was filling hot sauce cups at the age of 5. I was running the register at the age of 8 with the use of a step stool. I worked in the stores all throughout middle school, high school and on summer breaks from fashion business college in New York. After college, I wanted to experience something different and worked in clothing retail, working myself up to a store manager.

After a lot of thought and debate, I officially jumped into the family business in 2015, with my husband Jelani, opening a location in Colerain, OH. I really wanted to take the skills that I have learned at other companies and take Richie’s to the next level. Thanks for listening to my story and I appreciate all of you who make what we do at Richie’s on Colerain possible!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Running a business is never a smooth road it’s more like a roller coaster until you have established and implemented your systems and culture. When we jumped into the business there were so many things we didn’t know but didn’t know we didn’t know. The biggest struggle has been establishing a company culture and delegating to your team when you are used to doing everything. 

As you know, we’re big fans of Richie’s Chicken & Soul. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
At Richie’s Chicken & Soul, we are all about food, connection, and fun. We make our food with love and passion and we believe you can taste the difference. We believe in caring about our team, guests, and community and having a positive impact. We believe having fun while working should be normal and laughter is medicine for the soul. 

Our food is made with love and passion, our definition of Soul food. We marinate our chicken in-store, a time-intensive process that adds a deepness of flavor to our chicken. We also specialize in our hand-cut, hand-breaded, bone-in whiting that will transport you to a southern country church fish fry. There are no shortcuts to great flavor! 

Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
Emyth Revisted (book) Emyth (Coach) 

GaryVee Audio Experience (Podcast) 

Fast Casual Conference 

Life Coaches – Tony Robbins Coaching 

Restaurant Expert – Coach/Program 

Youtube – General Research