UK store launches as Popeyes takes on the chicken sandwich world war

Two years after the chicken sandwich war started, American restaurant brand of fried chicken Popeyes is to enter the UK this year, with plans to open hundreds of new restaurants in the UK over the next decade as part of an ambitious European expansion plan.

The UK is set to become Popeyes’ fourth largest European market, following its launch in Spain, Switzerland and Turkey. The brand already has more than 3,400 outlets in 29 countries and plans a huge expansion in China, where it opened its first restaurant in May.

Popeyes has also opened chicken sandwich restaurants in Brazil and also today confirmed plans to open hundreds more stores in Mexico.

The first of 350 Popeyes outlets planned in the UK is expected to open by the end of 2021 and will become the brand’s 11th.^e countries in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, which already has more than 350 Popeyes restaurants.

Founded in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1972, Popeyes is best known for its chicken sandwich, which was the subject of one of the most successful launches in quick-service restaurant history when it was released in the United States. United States in August 2019, rocketed the company into the big time and prompted fast food rivals to launch or test their own chicken sandwich options.

Popeyes is committed to digital innovation

The company will enter the UK market as part of a deal between PLK Europe, a subsidiary of Restaurant Brands International (RBI), Ring International Holdings (RIH) and hospitality industry veteran Elias Diaz Sese. Sese is a former RBI executive, shareholder and director of Domino’s Pizza UK and Ireland, and until October 2019 he was UK, Ireland and Scandinavia chairman of Kraft Heinz.

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Although Popeyes promises to lead digital innovation in-store and in food ordering, David Shear, RBI’s international president, said it was too early to say whether new UK outlets would have food lockers, although Burger King, which shares the same parent company. , deploys them on its sites.

Shear said: “We are delighted to announce that we will be introducing the Popeyes brand in the UK. Popeyes has established itself as an international brand, renowned for creating authentic, Louisiana-inspired fried chicken products. Our UK launch will build on other successful international expansions in Spain, Switzerland, China, the Philippines and most recently Sri Lanka. We can’t wait to get started. “

Popeyes also achieved net restaurant growth of 132 stores in the United States in 2020, and in the future the company said it intends to assess international opportunities by creating master franchisees with rights. development and joint ventures with franchisees, generating solid net growth in restaurants in 2021.

Across its three chains, RBI has more than 27,000 restaurants worldwide, and CEO Jose Cil told investors in August that he plans to increase that number to 40,000.

Popeyes and the Chicken Sandwich War

Popeyes rose to prominence after starting the Chicken Sandwich War in 2019, when his namesake sandwich became an instant hit after a social media frenzy. It sold out just two weeks after launch, and the chain had served 250 million sandwiches in its first year of launch.

Unsurprisingly, its success prompted others to respond. The Chick-fil-A has been revamped and in January McDonald’s

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released no less than three new chicken sandwiches. According to Edison Trends, online spending on chicken sandwiches jumped an incredible 420% between January 2019 and December 2020, with Chick-fil-A grabbing 45% of total online orders in December 2020.

Burger King, KFC, Wendy’s, and other fast food brands have all launched or started testing new chicken sandwiches on their menus.

For its part, Popeyes will be the last of the three chains of the fast food giant RBI to launch into the UK market, after Burger King, which is well established in the country, and Tim Hortons, which entered the UK with one site in Glasgow four. years ago and now has 27 restaurants, including a flagship venue in Leicester.