KFC to open 500 new restaurants in UK as part of major expansion plan
KFC estimates that the UK fried chicken market is worth £3.1bn annually, and it expects it to continue to grow, with new entrants in recent years including Popeyes, Wingstop, Dave's Hot Chicken and Slim Chickens
KFC is planning to open 500 new UK restaurants over the next five years as part of a major expansion drive. The chicken fast food giant said the £1.5illion plan would create more than 7,000 new jobs.
KFC said £466million of the overall funding would go towards opening new "flagship" high street stores and drive-thrus in 'key locations' such as Ireland and North West England. Alongside this, KFC will be "upgrading" more than 200 restaurants, which equates to 20% of its UK store estate.
The brand added that it will spend £404million to 'strengthen KFC's long-standing relationships with its suppliers and help businesses across the UK and Ireland continue to grow'.
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KFC estimates that the UK fried chicken market is worth £3.1billion annually, and it expects it to continue to grow, with new entrants in recent years including Popeyes, Wingstop, Dave's Hot Chicken and Slim Chickens.
Rob Swain, general manager KFC UK & Ireland, said: 'We've been serving customers in the UK for 60 years now, but we've never seen such strong demand for freshly prepared, fried chicken as we're seeing today.
'As the market leader and a near-£2billion revenue business, we're incredibly well positioned to unlock this opportunity.
'That's why we're doubling down on our commitment to the UK&I with a major investment in our restaurants, and in the suppliers who have been so crucial to our success, which will create jobs in local communities across the country.'
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Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, added: 'Hospitality's ability to create places where people want to live, work and invest is unrivalled. This significant announcement from KFC is proof of that and will help to drive socially productive growth, deliver economically and support employment across the UK.'
To mark 60 years of operating in the UK and Ireland, KFC also released its first economic and community impact report, which showed that it had added £110billion of total annual economic contribution to the UK economy every year. It also reported that it spends £856million annually directly with UK-based suppliers
Over the last 60 years, KFC says it has contributed £ 11.6 billion to the UK economy. Kentucky Fried Chicken - known better as KFC -was founded by Colonel Harland D Sanders in Kentucky in the 1950s. The first KFC site to open was in Preston, Lancashire, in 1965. As of now, the chain has over 1,000 branches across the UK and Ireland and employs 33,500 people through its company and 27 franchise partners.
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