Popeyes® Franchise Overview

About Popeyes®

Founded in New Orleans in 1972, Popeyes® has more than 45 years of history and culinary tradition. The Popeyes® brand distinguishes itself with a unique New Orleans style menu featuring spicy chicken, chicken tenders, fried shrimp, and other regional items. 

Franchise History

The Popeyes story began in New Orleans back in 1972, when Al Copeland opened a quick-service restaurant called "Chicken on the Run," selling traditional mild fried chicken to the folks in small New Orleans suburb of Arabi. But business was slow, and Copeland realized that he'd have to sell a spicier alternative to his standard chicken recipe if he wanted to impress flavor-seeking New Orleanians. Copeland had already been experimenting with the flavorful Cajun recipes he'd been enjoying all his life and soon reopened his restaurant as "Popeyes," named after the character Popeye Doyle in the movie "The French Connection." With this new concept, Copeland made his mark on the world. He found his success through the delicious New Orleans-style fried chicken that has now made Popeyes famous. The rest, as they say, is history. In 1976, Popeyes opened its first franchise restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.