Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc.[a] is an American multinational chain of fried chicken restaurants founded in 1972 in New Orleans and headquartered in Miami.

[10][12] Owner Al Copeland (1944–2008) wanted to compete with Kentucky Fried Chicken,[13] but his restaurant failed after several months.

[citation needed] By 1990, Copeland Enterprises was in default on $391 million in debts it had taken on in its 1989 purchase of Church's, a rival fast food chain also focusing in fried chicken, and by April 1991, the company filed for bankruptcy protection.

[citation needed] On August 8, 2000, Popeyes announced a franchise development plan/agreement that included 35 new restaurant locations around Australia in a bid to solidify their presence within the Asia Pacific region.

Popeyes had continued to license the seasonings, recipes, and techniques from DF&S for a yearly 'spice royalty', before buying them outright for $43 million.

[24] However, the company's early brand became deeply tied to the cartoon star with its sponsorship of the Popeye & Pals children's show in New Orleans, and the character appeared on items from packaging to racing boats.

[24] In late November 2012, AFC announced the mutual termination of their licensing contract with King Features Syndicate, effectively ending their association with the Popeye characters.

On July 29, 2013, AFC began offering a special entree of fried chicken strips dipped in waffle batter, which was already a proven success in some markets.

The company first launched the sandwich at Long Beach restaurant Sweet Dixie Kitchen, a locally-famous spot that had become known for reselling fried chicken that it had purchased at Popeyes.

[31] The marketing campaign, designed by advertising agency GSD&M started on August 12, 2019, with a tweet on Popeyes' Twitter feed.

The new sandwich went viral immediately and prompted responses from nearly every fast food chain including McDonald's, Chick-Fil-A, and Wendy's.

[42] Popeyes chicken sandwich is made of buttermilk-battered white meat on a brioche bun along with pickles and mayonnaise or spicy Cajun spread.

TV and radio ads often use New Orleans-style music, along with the trademark "Love That Chicken" jingle[45] sung by New Orleans funk and R&B musician Dr. John.

[46] The character is meant to be "honest, vibrant, youthful and authentic" according to Dick Lynch, Popeyes Chief Marketing Officer.

Popeyes arrived in the Philippines in 2001 but left in 2007 due to a problem with the franchisor;[55][56][57] it later returned with a new deal with Kuya J Group in 2018 and opened its first branch in Pasig on May 19, 2019.

In December 2020, Popeyes announced that it would be closing all locations in South Korea due to poor sales partially attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.