Initiative Drives Focus to Popeyes' Louisiana Brand Heritage, Taste Test Win
Popeyes® Louisiana Kitchen, a division of AFC Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: AFCE), today launched a major marketing and advertising initiative designed to underscore the results of a national taste test between Popeyes' Spicy and Mild Bonafide® bone-in fried chicken and KFC® Original Recipe® fried chicken. The integrated campaign, which heralds the fact that Popeyes Beat KFC, is the most significant marketing push in the company's history.
"We have a strong data-driven decision making process at Popeyes and that focus has allowed us to grow market share at a time when other brands are losing theirs," said Cheryl Bachelder, CEO for Popeyes. "We took a careful look at case histories and the success of competitive claims from a host of other brands and used those results to drive our decision to make official what we have always known. Popeyes simply tastes better. Now that we have that independent data, we are using it to invite our guests to come in and see why America loves that chicken from Popeyes."
The campaign pays homage to Popeyes' rich culinary heritage, celebrating its recipe-inspired Bonafide® bone-in fried chicken that hails from "the land of good cooking" versus its competitor's roots from the "land of fast horses." National television spots featuring brand spokesperson "Annie" begin airing today.
"Our brand heritage is what defines us," said Richard Lynch, CMO for Popeyes. "We are confident our authentic, distinctive food, marinated and cooked in the tradition of our Louisiana roots, is what fueled customer preference and this exciting taste test win. We know one of the keys to our continued success is to stay true to our brand heritage."
Popeyes kicked off the campaign in New York's Times Square last week, where hundreds of Popeyes fans donned the brand's signature spicy orange in celebration of the taste test win. Additional campaign elements include in-store point of purchase materials and a dedicated online fan site - www.PopeyesBeatKFC.com.
About Popeyes® Louisiana Kitchen
Founded in 1972 in New Orleans, Popeyes is a leader in the New Orleans segment of the foodservice industry and is the world's second largest quick-service chicken concept. As of July 11, 2010 Popeyes had 1,945 restaurants in the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Cayman Islands, and 26 foreign countries. For more information, visit the Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Web site at www.popeyes.com.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6411791&lang=en
Contacts:
For Popeyes® Louisiana Kitchen
Coltrin & Associates
Allison
Riley, 212-221-1616
allison_riley@coltrin.com
or
Popeyes®
Louisiana Kitchen
Alicia Thompson, 678-429-1179
Alicia.Thompson@popeyes.com
or
Karlie
Lahm, 404-966-3350
Karlie.Lahm@popeyes.com
