Business mogul Pinky Cole Hayes, has filed for Chaper 11 bankrupty according to court documents. The Clark Atlanta graduate and founder of Slutty Vegan restaurant sensation has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to court documents, the award-winning restaurateur is $1,4 million dollars in debt and hs been forced to cloe more than half of the chains locations.
Cole’s wildly popular eateries catered to health conscious consumers with a vegetarian-centric menu of fast-food offerings.
A rising number of vegan and vegetarian restaurants have failed recently, as they serve a small percentage of the population with less than 10% of Americans identifying as vegetarians or vegans.
Cole who has is lent her one considerable resources and expertise to help build opportuniotie for Black businesses and the community-at-large.
Cole, who was named to the prestigious list of TIME 100 Next influencers and power players in 2024, is nationally recognized for encouraging corporate business assistance and support for Black-owned businesses.
Slutty Vegan’s journey from a food truck to a multi-city restaurant chain and $100 million brand has been celebrated since it’s inception by consumers and industry experts for its service to both the Black community and Black entrepreneurs.
While Cole, and not the company, has filed for Chapter bankruptcy protection, the Slutty Vegan founder owns 85% of the restaurant chain.
In April 2025, Cole was still recovering from one of the most turbulent years of her career, in which she lost control of Slutty Vegan.
“At that time, Slutty Vegan was struggling with $10 million in corporate overhead, rapid expansion, and a cash burn that Cole admitted had become unsustainable. She filed for a state-level restructuring on February 13, 2025, and by March 28, she had bought back the company under a new parent name: Ain’t Nobody Coming to See You, Otis,” Complex reported.
There are tons of Black-owned restaurants that are so amazing, but … they just don’t get the recognition that they deserve,” Cole said in a 2024 interview, adding that both she and her husband Derrick Hayes of Big Dave Cheesesteaks are both beneficiaries of the support of loyal diners and consumers and other buisinesses in the economic chain.
