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Do Singaporeans love fried chicken or what?

If you were to ask the people running Popeyes, the answer, while licking their fingers, will likely be: "Mmm, nom nom nom, chicken, nice."

Putting money and chicken where their mouth is, Popeyes is planning on expanding to 50 outlets in Singapore over the next 10 years.

The expansion will start with a new outlet -- the 13th -- at The Rail Mall in Upper Bukit Timah in January 2023.

Ambitious plan

Popeyes currently has 12 outlets in Singapore, which are located at Jurong Point, Bugis Village and Kallang Wave, among other locations.

The expansion plan over the next decade will see it jostle for consumer dollars with the other big boys in the local market.

There are already 135 McDonald's outlets in Singapore as of April 2020.

KFC has more than 80 outlets here today.

Jollibee has expanded to 15 outlets in Singapore in the few short years it has been around.

Fei Siong Group taking over running of Popeyes

This ambitious expansion plan to plant new Popeyes outlets across the island was reported by Business Times.

It comes on the heels of food and beverage operator Fei Siong Group signing a franchise deal to take over the operations of new outlets of the Louisianan fried chicken chain in Singapore, and to work on its quantity and quality.

The 12 existing Popeyes outlets are run by Malaysian-based restaurant operator Revenue Valley.

Fei Siong is in talks with Revenue Valley to take over the operations of these outlets, as it wants to revitalise the franchise by introducing a new menu and tailor the existing menu to “better suit the Asian palate”.

It also wants to give the storefront a fresh new look to “refresh and modernise” Popeyes' outlets.

First foray into fast food

The partnership with Popeyes marks Fei Siong’s first foray into the fast food sector.

Fei Siong owns 19 brands, including EAT, Encik Tan and Malaysia Boleh!, and runs over 160 outlets in coffee shops and shopping malls.

They have so far been focused on hawker fare.

The plan for Popeyes also includes expanding the franchise to Malaysia.

The agreement with Popeyes Louisana Kitchen Asia-Pacific, a subsidiary of Restaurant Brands International (RBI), gives Fei Siong the right to develop and operate new Popeyes restaurants here.

RBI is a Canadian-American multinational fast food company that owns brands such as Burger King, Tim Hortons and Firehouse Subs.

Top photo via Alan Lin on Google Maps