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Popular Atlanta plant-based restaurant chain Slutty Vegan just secured a major bag.
Owner Aisha “Pinky” Cole recently announced Slutty Vegan, a four-year-old business, has secured $25 million through Series A funding.
The new investments make the empire’s valuation now at a whopping 100 million.
Some of the leading investors behind the funding include entrepreneur Richelieu Dennis’ New Voices Fund — a venture capital firm that invests in entrepreneurs of color — and restaurateur Danny Meyer’s Enlightened Hospitality Investments.
Meyer will offer the knowledge he’s gained from being the creator of Michelin-star restaurants and the food chain Shake Shack, while Dennis will provide his expertise as the creator of Sundial Brands, known for producing SheaMoisture and Nubian Heritage.
Cole plans to use her business’ new funding in part to open ten Slutty Vegan locations by 2022’s end and another ten next year, according to a recent profile in For(bes) The Culture.
The expansion will include locations in various markets, including Baltimore and Brooklyn.
Cole’s vision of making Slutty Vegan a billion-dollar brand “bigger than McDonald’s and Burger King and Chick-fil-A” additionally includes bringing on a chief operating officer and chief marketing officer to help manage the chain’s growth.
“When you walk into the doors of Slutty Vegan, it’s like coming into a sanctuary of fun,” Cole explained. “We’re yelling at you. We’re dancing. We got Hip Hop music busting through the speakers. You got people calling you a sl*t. You get your food. You got alcohol. It’s a party atmosphere.”
With menu items named things like “One Night Stand,” “Ménage à Trois” and “Fussy Hussy,” it’s no secret that the vibe Cole described drives in her customers as much as the food does.
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The chain’s popularity often causes its locations to have lines of hungry customers out of its doors, and many celebrities have issued Slutty Vegan and Cole their stamp of approval.
Cole is currently carrying her second child with her fiancé, fellow entrepreneur Derrick Haynes — and it’s reported that she still holds majority ownership in her Slutty Vegan empire.
The mother of two’s cookbook, Eat Plants, B–ch: 91 Vegan Recipes That Will Blow Your Meat-Loving Mind, will be published this fall.
“I’ve got a fear of failure. What entrepreneur wouldn’t?” Cole noted. “But you know what that fear does? It keeps me on my toes. It keeps me on my grind. I want to know that when Pinky is long gone, what I’ve created will continue to live on.”
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