EG Group acquires UK’s largest KFC franchise

Leading forecourt operator EG Group today (11 March) announced the acquisition of KFC franchise from Belfast-headquartered Herbert Group.

The deal is for the largest KFC franchise in the UK & Ireland and includes 146 KFC Restaurants and 1 Pizza Hut Store, in addition to a development pipeline and a small number of non-trading sites.

“Securing the Herbert Group portfolio is well aligned to our long-term strategic growth plans and builds on our commitment to grow the EG Group’s presence in the food-to-go retail convenience segment,” said Zuber Issa, founder and co-CEO of EG Group.

“The Herbert Group portfolio is a great strategic addition and complements our expanding operations in the United Kingdom and furthermore, now allows us entry into the Irish market.”

The rapidly expanding EG Group now operates over 1,500 food-to-go retail concessions across ten international markets including the UK, Ireland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Italy, Germany, USA and Australia.

“We are committed to working closely with the KFC brand team to invest in the portfolio we are acquiring, and to open new restaurants. There is already a strong development pipeline for us to work towards developing,” Issa added.

Earlier in the day, the Blackburn-based group announced a deal to acquire Oliver’s Real Food in Australia, a chain of 24 sites providing a healthy fast food alternative on Australia’s major arterial highways.