How Kim Kardashian’s Ex Quietly Built A New Empire After Their Infamous Split

From Basketball Player to Quiet Minnesota Life

Imagine you are a basketball player named Kris Humphries. You marry a super-famous woman named Kim Kardashian, but the marriage lasts only 72 days! After that, cameras and gossip follow you everywhere.

Instead of staying in the spotlight (being on TV and in magazines), Kris walked away from the crazy media attention and the fancy celebrity life. He went back to his home state, Minnesota, and decided to do something different.

Important: Unlike many famous people who try to stay visible, Kris intentionally disappeared from Hollywood. He wanted to be known for his basketball and his business, not for being "That Guy from TV."

After retiring from the NBA (the big professional basketball league), he settled in Minnesota and chose family life and business over the entertainment world. More than ten years later, he has reinvented himself as a businessman—and his biggest success happened far from Hollywood cameras.

A Tasty New Start: Dave’s Hot Chicken

Kris got a fresh start in the restaurant world. In 2022, he and his family became franchise partners (that means they teamed up to open many branches of a brand) with a popular chicken chain called Dave’s Hot Chicken. They brought this yummy spicy chicken to Minnesota!

Kris was super excited and wrote on Instagram (a social media app), as reported by the Daily Mail:

"Super excited to bring @daveshotchicken to Minnesota with my family. This is the best chicken ever! Get ready Minnesota."

What makes his restaurants special?

• They have colorful artwork and modern design.
• They serve a popular menu of tasty chicken.
• They are nothing like the reality TV headlines that once defined Kris’s public image.

Kardashian’s Ex Is Expanding His Restaurant Footprint

The first restaurant was just the beginning! According to Downtown Voices, the Humphries family has secured plans to develop 18 Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants across Minnesota. That turns a single investment into a long-term business strategy.

Kris’s cousin, Alex, said that a neighborhood in Minneapolis called North Loop matched the brand perfectly:

"The mix of historic preservation and modern innovation in the North Loop creates a unique atmosphere that we believe is ideal for Dave’s Hot Chicken."

With its fun style and good food, this business is a far cry from the old reality-show drama.

Kim Kardashian’s Ex Is Using Social Media To Promote His New Venture

Even though Kris stays away from celebrity parties, he hasn’t vanished from social media. But instead of posting glamorous events, his Instagram now shows his growing chicken business.

He often does these things:

• Shares videos of food creators visiting his Dave’s Hot Chicken locations.
• Tastes menu favorites himself.
• Gives followers a behind-the-scenes look at the expanding franchise.

In a 2023 post, he sat at a table loaded with chicken and sides and declared: "It’s Go Time Baby!"

Inside Kardashian And Humphries’ Whirlwind Romance

Long before the chicken empire, Kris was at the center of a huge Hollywood love story. Here is the timeline in simple steps:

1. Late 2010: Kim Kardashian and Kris (whom the original report describes as "the 41-year-old") began dating after mutual friends introduced them. Their relationship moved at a whirlwind pace.
2. May 2011: Kris proposed with a 20.5-carat Lorraine Schwartz diamond ring (a giant shiny stone!).
3. Three months later: They married in a lavish ceremony in Montecito, California, televised as "Kim’s Fairytale Wedding" on E!.
4. 72 days after saying "I do": Kim filed for divorce (the legal end of a marriage), citing "irreconcilable differences" (they just couldn’t get along). She later admitted she realized during the honeymoon that it wasn’t right.
5. After the split: Kris initially sought an annulment (a court saying the marriage shouldn’t count) on grounds of fraud (trickery). After a lengthy legal battle, they reached a settlement in 2013.

Photo credit: Lumeimages / MEGA

Humphries Addressed Longstanding Claims About His Marriage To Kim Kardashian

Years after the split, in 2019, Kris wrote a candid essay for The Players’ Tribune (a website where athletes share real stories). He admitted he never wanted to be famous and struggled with the intense attention.

He wrote: "I was definitely naive about how much my life was going to change." The biggest misconception, he said, was the belief that their romance had been staged (fake for TV). He shared:

"There’s definitely a lot about that world that is not entirely real. But our actual relationship was 100 percent real."

Kris described the breakup as "brutal" (very painful). The public scrutiny (everyone watching) left him anxious and reluctant to leave his home. Looking back, he said all he ever wanted was to be known for basketball, not for being "That Guy from TV."

Photo credit: Lumeimages / MEGA

Key Takeaway: Kris’s story shows you can leave fame behind and build something real with family—like a chicken restaurant chain!

Summary

Let’s recap what we learned:

• Kris Humphries left the celebrity life after a short marriage to Kim Kardashian.
• He moved back to Minnesota and retired from the NBA.
• In 2022, he and his family partnered with Dave’s Hot Chicken to bring the brand to Minnesota.
• They plan to open 18 locations, starting with North Loop, Minneapolis.
• He promotes the business on Instagram instead of personal drama.
• His past romance was fast: dated late 2010, proposed May 2011, married three months later, divorced after 72 days, settled legally in 2013.
• In 2019, he shared that he never wanted fame and his relationship was real.

This article is based on the original report titled "How Kim Kardashian’s Ex Quietly Built A New Empire After Their Infamous Split" from The Blast.

FAQ

Q1: Who is Kris Humphries?
A: He is a former NBA basketball player who was briefly married to Kim Kardashian. Today he is a businessman running Dave’s Hot Chicken franchises.

Q2: What is Dave’s Hot Chicken?
A: It’s a rapidly growing restaurant brand that serves spicy fried chicken. Kris and his family are opening many of these stores in Minnesota.

Q3: Why did Kris leave the celebrity lifestyle?
A: He said he never wanted to be famous and felt anxious from all the public attention after his divorce. He chose family and business in his home state instead.

Q4: How many restaurants does he plan to open?
A: The Humphries family has plans to develop 18 Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants across Minnesota.

Q5: Did Kris say his marriage to Kim was fake?
A: No. In his 2019 essay, he said that while the celebrity world isn’t fully real, their actual relationship was "100 percent real."