The British franchise holder of the Popeyes Louisiana Chicken brand has sealed a deal with listed travel food retailer SSP Group to launch Popeyes restaurants across British air gateways in time for the peak summer travel season.
The first store from Popeyes UK—and operated by SSP through a strategic partnership —will open at Birmingham International Airport in the departures area within weeks. The airport in the heart of England is Britain’s seventh busiest, handling 12.8 million passengers last year.
Popeyes UK’s chief development officer, Tom Byng, commented: “This is the first of a number of locations we will open with SSP, marking a significant milestone for the business.” Kari Daniels, CEO of SSP UK & Ireland, added: “There’s a huge appetite for Popeyes… so we’re really excited to launch this new partnership at U.K. travel hubs.”
SSP, whose global sales rose by 17% to £3.4 billion ($4.4 billion) in 2024, did not reveal which airports, or how many, are lined up after the initial Birmingham opening.
Popeyes first entered the U.K. market in November 2021 but it has only been since private equity firm TDR Capital has been involved that growth has been supercharged. The airport push is a sign of that commitment to expansion, with the British arm also testing the market with drive-thru restaurants.
The chain, founded in New Orleans in 1972, has expanded to more than 65 sites across the country—more than 30 of which opened last year—with annual sales surpassing $129 million (£100 million) in 2024. The revenue has surged mainly due to the speed of new openings thanks to an investment injection from TDR.
Popeyes picks up the pace
The London-based private equity firm first took a stake in Popeyes UK in July 2023, having already established a relationship with Popeyes owner, Toronto-based Restaurant Brands International (RBI)—which also owns Burger King, Tim Hortons, and Firehouse Subs—in the French market.
TDR picked up the master franchise for Popeyes in France in February 2023 and the success of that deal led RBI to introduce TDR to the shareholders of the Popeyes UK master franchise in the same year. By December 2023, the private equity firm had taken a majority stake in the British business and set an ambitious expansion plan; targeting 350 outlets by 2031. This year, the aim is to almost double its current store portfolio, which now includes expansion in the air travel channel.
At Birmingham Airport, Popeyes will offer dine-in and takeaway options from its signature Louisiana-seasoned ‘shatter-crunch’ chicken wraps and sandwiches, to hot wings and tenders. All the chicken is halal certified and marinated for 12 hours and a breakfast menu will also be available.
SSP is a key food and beverage partner at the Midlands airport. In December 2024, the operator launched a Peaky Blinders-inspired bar and kitchen having negotiated a deal for global rights in travel environments with Banijay Rights, the global distribution arm of content house Banijay Entertainment.
The multi-award-winning Peaky Blinders television series, based on the Birmingham street gang which operated from the 1880s until the 1920s, was created and written by Steven Knight and has been sold into more than 183 countries including internationally on Netflix.
According to a February 2025 company update from RBI, Popeyes has a global estate of more than 4,900 restaurants across 45 markets, generating system-wide sales of approximately $6.1 billion.