As Americans we can be the most patient, impatient people. We will curse at still traffic and rush a pedestrian across the road and are instantly infuriated when our well-done steak takes longer than we are willing to wait for it.
Yet, with calm and poise we will stand in lines wrapped around an amusement park or concert venue. We sometimes pay for things years in advance and can patiently stand outside a department store to get a television that is going on sale at the stroke of midnight.
That was not the case with the release of Popeyes Chicken’s first chicken sandwiches.
On Aug. 12, 2019, Popeyes Chicken released a pair of chicken sandwiches as featured limited time menu items, a first ever for the restaurant. The company prepared and stocked its restaurants with two months’ supply of chicken filets to meet the anticipated demand of the new sandwiches.
Social media feeds, outlets, channels, tweets, posts and polls were all about the dynamic duo. It not only took the internet by storm, but also Popeyes themselves. They were undoubtedly the sandwiches ‘heard round the world.’
The overwhelming demand for the sandwiches was no match for the supply on hand. Patrons stood and sat in long lines. Some locations sprouted arguments and even physical altercations. Head Chef Amy Alarcon stated within two short weeks, the supply that should have lasted their 3,000 locations two months was completely sold out.
As the now infamous, “Be right back” posters were hung, and the last customers were turned away, the question on everyone’s mind was, when will they actually be back?
To answer this question along with why it took two whole months to restock and get them back on the menu, Fortune Magazine interviewed several key players in the Popeyes franchise. Among those interviewed were Head of Marketing United States, Bruno Cardinali, President of the Americas, Felipe Athayde as well Popeyes Head Chef, Amy Alarcon.
The most direct answer was from Athayde, who stated, “We literally ran out of the chicken filets!” When Chef Alarcon was asked about why the restock took an usually long amount of time, she explained that the specialty cut of filet that they used to meet their standard was not something they could just go down to the local market and get.
In late October, the company tweeted the long-awaited sandwiches would be permanently returning Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019, which sparked a host of new theories, one being that the motivation of releasing the sandwiches on a Sunday was intentionally scheduled after the original release led to a social media fueled comparison of the Popeye newcomers and the classic Chik-fil-A chicken sandwich. Many people saw this re-release as a jab at the restaurant due to their strict closed-on Sunday policies.
Popeyes even tweeted “Seriously…ya’ll Good?” in response to a screenshot that was tweeted from Chik-fil-A apologizing for an email about #nationalsandwichday, on which they would actually be closed.
According to Forbes, it is estimated that Popeyes reaped the equivalent of $65 million in free media exposure with the wave of social media influence they received. The August release “led to one of the best quarters in the last twenty years” in the almost 50-year history of the company, according to Athayde. Whether intentional or non-intentional this was an excellent PR campaign driven by the two-month restocking timeline and millions in free marketing.
With social media doing all the leg work, it is not surprising that the Popeyes website itself does not advertise or market the sandwiches at all.
Despite the suspicions, people rallied once more to get behind their new favorite chicken sandwiches. The November re-launch not only brought the sought-after sandwiches back but added them as permanent menu items. The company currently has a three sandwich per person maximum in place for patrons.
Celebrities are once again part of the sandwich conversation as well. Sports Center tweeted a quote from NFL quarterback Deshawn Watson, who recently attributed his win against the Jaguars to the Popeyes sandwiches he had eaten during the week.
I visited a location in Snellville, Georgia, and waiting inside the busy restaurant lobby for about an hour and 20 minutes, I got my hands and mouth on my own spicy chicken sandwiches.
I spoke with members of the team, including manager Damonte McCray. McCray said, “We were not ready or prepared for the popularity when the sandwiches first came out. I really don’t think anyone was.”
Mary Bolton, a kitchen team member added that she had, “Never seen anything like it in the eight years I have worked for the company.”
McCray added, “We made a lot of changes in preparation for adding the sandwiches back to the menu my staff had extra training to prepare them for the long lines and faster food preparation. We even had training on how to more properly deal with any issues concerning upset customers.”
“Overall, I think our re-release week went great. The lines are still long, but we are much more confident, efficient and better staffed this time,” said McCray.
People may not agree if the spicy is better than the original or if Popeyes if better than Chik-fil-A, but one thing is for sure. They are definitely talking about it, again.
