Jubilant FoodWorks Limited (JFL), which holds the master franchise for Domino’s Pizza and Dunkin’ Donuts in India, unveiled a Popeyes store in New Delhi’s Chandni Chowk. This marks the brand’s foray into the national capital region; it entered India in 2022.
The brand plans to open stores in locations including Jasola, Faridabad, and Gurugram over the coming weeks. It has already established a presence in Chandigarh in the North and locations such as Chennai, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Bengaluru and Manipal in the South.
Like Domino’s, Popeyes has its own delivery fleet (a zero-emission one), along with a presence on popular food aggregator apps such as Zomato and Swiggy. The company announced last year that it planned to open 250 stores across India in 4-5 years, with 50 openings in FY24 itself. It expects Rs 1,000 crore in sales from Popeyes in this period.
“About 70% of Indians are non-vegetarians and of this, two-thirds eat only chicken. In that sense, India is a chicken-only non-vegetarian market,” said Sameer Khetarpal, CEO and MD of Jubilant FoodWorks. He estimates that two-thirds of this market is served by unorganised players, which means a big opportunity waiting to be tapped.
According to Mordor Intelligence, the Indian quick service restaurant market is estimated to reach $25.4 billion in 2024. Fried chicken brands have a small 15% share, which is growing at a CAGR of 18%. About 30-40% of the fast food market is delivery-based and the balance is dine-in and takeaway.
“Fried chicken can outperform pizza in terms of new store expansion and adoption, which would drive better same-store sales growth than peers,” says Karan Taurani, senior vice-president at Elara Capital.
The brand sees a lot of potential in markets such as Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. “Its biggest competitor is KFC, which dominates the market. Punjab would be an excellent market in terms of sheer potential,” says Pramod Damodaran, CEO, Wagh Bakri Tea Lounge, and former head, restaurant excellence, KFC.