Popeyes creates nearly 700 UK jobs as sales double
The UK arm of fast food restaurant chain Popeyes has created almost 700 jobs as its sales more than doubled, it has been revealed.
The division of the US giant increased its headcount in this country from 1,492 to 2,179, new accounts filed with Companies House have confirmed.
The results also show that its turnover surged from £58.1m to £118.8m in 2024 while its pre-tax loss was cut from £10.4m to £2.3m.
The results come after Popeyes outlined proposals in January to almost double its footprint in the UK with the opening of more than 45 restaurants.
At the time, Popeyes said it expected to create around 2,500 jobs and it will target sales of more than £200m in 2025.
Popeyes to expand further across the UK
Popeyes UK CEO Drew Taylor said: “Popeyes UK delivered very strong growth and strategic progress in the year ended 31, December, 2024.
“We more than doubled our annual revenue to exit the period with a sales run rate of £150m, and sold the equivalent of one sandwich every three seconds in 2024.
“Our 2024 accounts reflect the significant investment that we have made into achieving long-term, sustainable growth, most notably through 33 new site openings.
“This momentum has continued into 2025, having increased our estate to over 80 restaurants at the half year, and we are set to achieve our ambition of broadly doubling our UK footprint in 2025.
“We have also focused on strengthening our exceptional team, and we are very proud to have been listed by The Sunday Times as one of the UK’s Best Places to Work.
“Having entered the UK less than five years ago, we are extremely proud of the progress we have made in that time, increasing sales by over £100m from £15m in 2022 to £118m in 2024.
“We remain excited about the growth opportunities for Popeyes in the UK and look forward to bringing our famous Louisiana chicken to more consumers across the country.”
Rival Wingstop also creating jobs
Earlier this week, Morning Wire reported that rival Wingstop created 1,000 UK jobs during the last nine months of 2024 as its sales and profit surged before being taken over.
The UK franchise of the US restaurant chain increased its headcount from 1,230 to 2,216.
Its turnover jumped over the same period from £84.6m to £125m while its pre-tax profit rose from £3.5m to £13.1m.
During the year Wingstop opened 57 locations across the UK, up from 42 in the year to 31 March, 2024.
At the end of 2024, the UK franchise of Wingstop sold a majority stake to US private equity giant Sixth Street in a deal worth £400m.