Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Signs Master Franchisee for Spain

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen has signed a new master franchise agreement to expand in Spain. The franchisee is Restaurant Brands Iberia, which already was a franchisee for the other two brands (Tim Hortons, Burger King) owned by Popeyes parent Restaurant Brands International.

According to an article Verdict Foodservice, Restaurant Brands Iberia has been developing and managing Burger King restaurants in Portugal since 2016, and in Spain since 2017 through a joint venture between Burger King Europe and BK QMI Spain; and became the master franchisee for Iberia (Spain and Portugal) in 2017.

Another article, in Restaurant Dive, noted the following about Spain's prospects for franchise growth in the fast food sector:

• "Spain is an interesting market for such growth -- a 2016 study found that the country's citizens eat the least amount of fast food of any industrialized country in the world. But that could already be changing. A report from the EAE Business School predicts that expenditures on fast food in Spain will rise by 50% between 2016 and 2021."
• "According to Aaron Allen & Associates, the European fast food landscape is shifting quickly as consumers become time constrained. The firm predicts heavy potential for Spain specifically, as it's projected to have relatively high GDP growth in the next three years, which correlates with higher food away from home growth."

The expansion into Spain is part of Restaurant Brands International's plan to grow its three brands from 26,000 to 40,000 restaurants in the next 8 to 10 years.