Last time we talked about how McDonald’s made their debut in Japan, but KFC in China is amplified to a whole different scale! In 2021, KFC made $7.1B in China with its ~8,500 locations in the country. Here’s how they succeeded: 👇​ 👇​ 

The Start: 🐣​

• KFC opened its first store in Beijing back in 1987.

• To scale locations, KFC hired executives with fast-food business experiences in Asia.

• Many of them were from Taiwan, having worked for McD previously.

• The team of executives were then dubbed the “Taiwan Gang”, and these 3 decisions they made led KFC to be the King of Fried Chicken in China today.

1. Localised Menu 🍲​

• Understanding the market, KFC China caters to local tastes by introducing local varieties besides their signature fried chicken.

• They release ~50 new products a year compared to 2-3 in USA, ie. egg tarts, soy milk, fish & shrimp burgers etc.

2. Real Estate 🏘️​

• Instead of competing with McD in China’s tier 1 cities, KFC chose to expand via hundreds of smaller cities.

• Appealing to the Chinese masses, not just the hyper-urban.

• This allowed them to secure the best real estate in these cities and become nationally recognised, ie. 1st mover advantage.

• This gave KFC a massive 30% fast food market share in China, beating McD’s 15%.

3. Supply Chain 🛒​

• Due to the sheer size of China, this enabled KFC to invest in a local distribution arm.

• It was a big price to pay but ultimately worth it for them to continue releasing new products quickly and expand their menu.

• Besides the “secret” herbs and spices, all the other menu items are sourced locally.

Bonus fact: 🥗

KFC is so successful in China that they opened a few spin-offs.

• K-Pro is a fast-food chain by KFC for the health-conscious consumer, they don’t sell fried chicken, instead they sell juices, salads and sandwiches!

• KFC also used its iconic Colonel Sanders to open tea shops called “Grandpa Comfy Tea”.

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This series is brought to you by Lee Way (@leewaylau). He will be writing about political & societal issues, history, movies and music on What's Up Wednesday.