Young Chefs Owners: Chris and Elizabeth McKelvey

Young Chefs franchise owners Chris and Elizabeth McKelvey opened their first location in The Woodlands, TX in early 2024, on the heels of the COVID pandemic. While it may have seemed an unlikely time to start a business, they were eager to start sharing what they had learned as new YCA owners with the youth in their community. We are so glad they did! 

In 2024, YCA awarded Chris and Elizabeth Franchisees of the Year, a testament to their hard work, dedication and contribution to the Young Chefs system. And now this amazing team is in the early stages of planning for a second YCA location in Tomball, TX! 

Below, Chris and Elizabeth share why owning a Young Chefs franchise has been a rewarding and life-changing experience.

Why did you choose to pursue a Young Chefs franchise business?

There are so many moving pieces to opening a new business, and so that’s really why we chose a franchise, because all of those systems and methods are already in place for new owners. This allows you to progress quickly and not have that much of a learning curve. 

We chose Young Chefs Academy because it checked all our boxes. We wanted to find something that was financially rewarding, personally rewarding, and matched our values. Even before Young Chefs Academy, we both had a passion for cooking in the kitchen, and we really enjoyed it.

Do YCA owners need to have culinary experience?

You don’t have to be a chef to own a YCA. The training takes care of that, and when I say you’re YCA trained, that’s all you need. When you come out of that training, you’ll be ready to do everything you need to run the business.

The training is so packed full of information. Also, we really enjoyed getting to know the YCA corporate team and spend time with them and really becoming part of that team. They’re such incredible people. 

Plus, the information doesn’t stop after the initial training. We have regular Zoom meetings and support from the corporate team anytime we need them for anything. 

What has been the most beneficial part of being part of the YCA franchise system? 

One of the biggest benefits to franchise ownership is the freedom it provides. We were lucky enough to have our first child just over a year ago. There were some medical problems that came up during the pregnancy. Because we owned the franchise, we were able to step away from the business when we needed to spend time on our family and make sure that we were OK. And thanks to our incredible team at The Woodlands, things kept running as usual and the business kept going. At any other job, working for someone else, we would have run out of time off. 

And speaking of staff, that’s actually definitely one of our favorite parts, is getting to meet incredible like-minded people and just create a team of people who all want to nurture our young chefs and to teach them those life skills. 

What’s your favorite thing about the YCA business model?

Truly one of our favorite things is the incredible community and the people, parents and kids, that we’ve been able to have the honor of meeting and teaching. We love getting to see the kids grow from where they start out, not just as chefs, but as people, and watching them change over the course of time. It’s been really rewarding. 

Congratulations on your new location in Tomball! What made you decide to expand to a second location?

After four amazing years in The Woodlands, watching kids grow in confidence, conquer picky eating, and discover the joy of cooking, we knew we wanted to do even more. We have been so grateful for the love and support the Woodlands community has shown us over the past four years and because of that, we are so excited to expand our Young Chefs family!

Opening a second location means more young chefs finding their spark, more families creating memories, and more kids discovering a lifelong love for cooking. It’s everything we believe in, and we can’t wait to bring it to Tomball!

What advice would you give to someone considering a Young Chefs Academy?

If you’re thinking of starting a business and want something fulfilling and fun, give the team at Young Chefs Academy a call. It’s really been a life-changing and positive experience for us, and we think it will be for you, too.

Visit Franchise.YoungChefsAcademy.com to learn more about the YCA franchise opportunity.