Miami — Popeyes® has turned 50. The southern brand was founded in 1972 by Al Copeland in New Orleans. Continuing its growth trajectory, the company also plans to open more than 200 restaurants in 2022 across the U.S. and Canada.
“At Popeyes, we believe when guests bite into our crunchy signature chicken, they are automatically transported back to the original kitchen in the New Orleans suburb of Arabi. Year after year, Popeyes dedicated itself to ensuring the love, time, and traditions that went into making its fried chicken in 1972 remain the same today. We have stayed constant in our craft of making great chicken by marinating for 12 hours and hand battering and hand breading our signature chicken in our kitchens around the world. This love of the food is what has given Popeyes fried chicken its signature crunch for 50 years,” says Amy Alarcon, vice president of culinary innovation.
Restaurant Brands International (RBI) acquired Popeyes in 2017. While Popeyes remained a relatively beloved regional southern brand, after RBI’s acquisition it saw new growth. Within just 5 years, Popeyes grew from $3 billion in global system-wide sales to $5 billion.
“Popeyes has been on an incredible growth trajectory over the past few years and we’re just getting started,” says Sami Siddiqui, president of Popeyes. “When RBI acquired Popeyes just 5 years ago, we knew there was incredible potential to wow the world and reset standards for what southern food, fried chicken and hospitality should be. The launch of our Chicken Sandwich in 2019 proved just that, and as the president of this beloved brand, I take great pride in introducing Popeyes and our food to more and more people each day.”
Popeyes continues to expand its footprint with a total of 3,700+ locations globally. Since RBI’s acquisition, Popeyes has grown by 1,000 restaurants globally and have stated they expect to open more than 200 restaurants in 2022 across the U.S. and Canada. Earlier, the brand announced expansion into new markets like South Korea, France, India and Romania adding to existing international markets with room for expansion including China, United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil, Philippines, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Switzerland and Sri Lanka.
Founded in New Orleans in 1972, POPEYES® has become one of the world’s largest chicken quick-service restaurants with over 3,500 restaurants in the U.S. and around the world. For more information, visit www.popeyes.com.
SOURCE: POPEYES®