New wave of American fast-food chains bets on China's younger generation

SHANGHAI, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- At noon on a September day, the line outside the newly opened Church's Texas Chicken, a fried chicken shop from Atlanta in the United States, wound back two or three times, filling nearly half the walkway on a downtown Shanghai food street.

After about an hour, two young women were nearing the end of the line. "It's a first store, so a bigger crowd is only normal," one said. Behind them was an eager buyer surnamed Shi, who had studied in Canada. The bone-in fried chicken felt like an old acquaintance, he said. "It's juicier."

Across the street, Gao, the owner of a herbal tea shop, had grown used to the long queue out front. She recalled the crowds were even bigger in the first few days after opening. "They lined up from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m."

This American fast-food chain is the latest to make high-profile inroads into the Chinese mainland market. While McDonald's and KFC, which entered China over three decades ago, have long been etched in the memories of Chinese millennials, a new wave of U.S. fast-food brands is once again betting on China's younger generation.

In early August, Virginia-based burger brand Five Guys opened its first two Beijing locations at two Joy City malls, following its 2021 Shanghai debut. The chain, which prides itself on using fresh ingredients and no freezers, charges around 100 yuan (about 15 U.S. dollars) per meal, pricier than expected. Even weeks after opening, customers still line up for their orders.

In addition, Popeyes, the well-known Southern-style fried chicken chain that set up shop in Shanghai's busiest commercial district in 2020, ventured into Beijing this April with a store in Wangfujing shopping district, where waits once exceeded an hour before foot traffic gradually leveled off. Popeyes now operates more than 100 stores in China.

And there's more to come. Wendy's, headquartered in the U.S. state of Ohio, announced in May a new franchise agreement to build up to 1,000 restaurants in China over the next 10 years.

"With U.S. fast-food brands increasingly entering China, the Chinese market is a top priority in our global expansion, underscoring our long-term commitment to the country," Steven Zhang, China CEO of Texas Chicken, told Xinhua. The chain has signed a development deal with a local team for at least 600 stores.

PAST GLORY, NEW BATTLE

Chinese consumers' craze for American fast food can be traced back to a few years after the country's reform and opening up.

In November 1987, KFC opened its first fried chicken restaurant in the Chinese mainland at Qianmen, Beijing. A piece of original recipe chicken cost 2.5 yuan at the time -- a premium price by Chinese consumption standards then. Even so, crowds still waited nearly an hour in line for a piece of fried chicken.

In October 1990, McDonald's opened its maiden Shenzhen store, where all 20 cash registers running at full capacity still weren't enough to meet demand, and all 500 seats inside were filled. Back then, eating American fast food was considered a status symbol for the newly emerging Chinese middle class.

Over the past four decades, the country's fast-food sector has gone from a blank slate to one of the most crowded markets in the world. Domestic fried chicken and burger brands, like Wallace Burger & Chicken and Tasiting, have rapidly expanded their store counts.

Now, a U.S. brand can no longer rely on local consumers' reverence for foreign labels to succeed. "In 1987, a KFC meal took up 7 percent of the average monthly salary, making it a luxury; in 2026, a per-customer spend of 30 to 40 yuan accounts for only about 0.5 percent," said Tang Jiansheng, deputy secretary-general of the Shanghai Consumer Council. The newcomers have to find their own value for Chinese consumers, he added.

Five Guys and Church's Texas Chicken are not targeting lower-tier markets for the time being and are instead pursuing a niche strategy, with food priced slightly above KFC.

"As one of China's most trendsetting and inclusive cities, Shanghai is highly receptive to new things, making it an ideal place for foreign brands to take root and a high-quality market sample for refining our products, services, and operating models in the early stages," said Zhang of Texas Chicken.

NICHE MARKET

Having queued for a quarter of an hour outside the Church's Texas Chicken store in Shanghai, a customer surnamed Zhou said, "In Shanghainese, this is called 'ga nao mang' -- it just means joining the fun."

Queuing is never the hard part, said Tang, an expert in consumer insights and business analysis. "The make-or-break test for foreign fast-food companies is to turn viral queues into everyday repeat business."

Before opening, the Church's Texas Chicken store ran taste tests with over 500 Chinese consumers, adjusting saltiness, seasoning, and crispiness to fix issues locals care about, according to Zhang.

The restaurant sits in a fashionable food district in downtown Shanghai that has seen a revival in recent years. "Three years ago, business on this street was nothing special, but now it's bustling again," Zhou said, pointing at the fried chicken shop's decor. "The planning team chose the location shrewdly -- even though the rent is expensive here, it has the largest foot traffic."

"The restaurant sector here is fiercely competitive, but most brands lean heavily on delivery and are highly homogenized," explained Zhang. "Fried chicken, by contrast, has a natural edge -- it works for both dine-in and delivery, making it more resilient."

To adapt to Chinese consumers' new fast-food habits, McDonald's has introduced drive-thru restaurants in China, with more than 80 already operating in Beijing.

Yum China, which operates KFC in the Chinese mainland, said in a written reply to Xinhua that Chinese consumers now care about both "value for money" and "emotional value." Last year, the company partnered with 70 top IPs spanning gaming, anime and sports to deepen engagement with local consumers.

INTERWOVEN CHAINS

The presence of American brands in China is going hand in hand with their deep integration into the country's industrial chain. McDonald's China, together with its core Chinese supply chain partners, participated in a supply chain expo held in Beijing this June.

Its potato supplier in China has launched precision fertilization pilots on three farms across north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The program uses real-time petiole and soil testing, combined with dynamic fertilization decisions, to grow high-quality ingredients.

Yum China, which also owns Pizza Hut in the Chinese mainland, said it stays committed to a local-first approach, working to build a local supply chain system to world-class standards.

Church's Texas Chicken has chosen a local Chinese team to work with Yangtze River Delta suppliers and build a local supply chain, according to Zhang. "This model preserves the craft and brand identity of 74 years of American fried chicken while enabling quick, flexible responses to China's domestic market, avoiding cultural misfit issues."

In Tang's view, such a collaboration is now the popular approach used by foreign food brands entering China, thanks to the market's complexity, which requires deep localization and use of China's now highly mature local talent and capital.

China's supply chain depth and breadth mean "any brand producing and selling here can find ready and efficient support," said Tang.

"The resilience of China-U.S. trade ties over the past four decades rests on the value of China's market itself -- not just its vast consumer base, but its complete efficiency system," he added.