In 2023, KFC is still one of the best fast food chains in the country, but it's having a hard time keeping up with its biggest competitors.
In terms of market share, which is the share of all sales in an industry that goes to one company, Popeyes just passed KFC as the second largest chicken chain in the United States.
Research from Barclays shows that KFC's market share dropped from 16.1% to 11.3% in the last year. In the past year, Popeyes' market share also went down, from 15% to 11.9%.
Research from Barclays shows that KFC's market share dropped from 16.1% to 11.3% in the last year. In the past year, Popeyes' market share also went down, from 15% to 11.9%.
CNN says that KFC's loss of the #2 spot is the latest bad news for the chicken chain. KFC used to be the best until Chick-fil-A took the top spot about ten years ago.
For almost ten years, Chick-fil-A has been the leader in the fast food business as a whole. In fact, it does better than all of its rivals in one very important way:
According to CNBC, experts in the field also say that Chick-fil-A's continuing success is due to its friendly servers, limited menu, and quick drive-thru lanes.
KFC might be able to get back to number two because it's not too far behind Popeyes in terms of market share. But Popeyes seems to believe it can keep things going in a good way.
CEO Sami Siddiqui told CNBC in a statement that the company sees beating KFC as #2 as a "special milestone" that shows "we're headed in the right direction with much more growth to come."
At the same time, Popeyes has been a tough rival for KFC, especially since it added a bunch of very popular menu items in the last few years.
Popeyes started the chicken sandwich wars in 2019 when it showed off its popular fried chicken sandwich.