Kentucky Fried Chicken or KFC is a brand today that needs no introduction. It is one of the largest restaurant chains in the world that shot to fame with its trade secret recipe consisting of 11 herbs and spices. Owned by Yum Brands, the restaurant has its presence in over 140+ countries around the globe. It is a dominating brand when it comes to fast food and fried chicken.
Want to know more about the brand? Here is a detailed SWOT analysis of KFC.
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Key Strengths of KFC
KFC could have never grown to its current size and position without having a diverse range of strengths. Some of the key strengths are highlighted below:
Global Network
With the end of 2018, the KFC franchisee network has increased its presence in over 141 countries and territories with over 22,000 locations. This strong global presence of its restaurants is definitely one of the biggest strengths of the brand.
Trade Secret
The trademark Colonel Sander’s secret recipe with 11 herbs and spices has played a big role in KFC’s rise to fame. It has today become one of the most famous trade secrets in the restaurant and the food industry.
Backed by a Powerful Corporation
Another key strength of KFC is that it is owned and backed by Yum Foods which is a Fortune 500 company that also owns Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. This factor has given KFC many opportunities and resources for growth and development.
Brand Name and Recognition
Thanks to years of campaigns and advertisements, KFC has built an instantly recognizable brand name and reputation. Through this, they have managed to create a loyal base of customers that play a crucial role in its growth and development.
Key Weaknesses of KFC
Though KFC today is one of the leading brands in the restaurant industry, there are also a few weaknesses that plague its growth. However, these weaknesses are not isolated to KFC. This is something that most fast-food restaurants today have to deal with.
Limited Vegetarian Options
Vegetarians form key demographics for any brand today in the food industry. However, many outlets of KFC today are exclusively for non-vegetarian customers. This is a major weakness of the brand that competitors like McDonalds and Pizza Hut are capitalizing upon.
Does not Cater to the Health-Conscious Population
Like many other fast food joints, KFC also has a menu that is mostly unhealthy. It is laden with fats and calories that are linked in many studies and reports to obesity, health risks, and other diseases. With an increasing number of people becoming health conscious, the flawed menu is definitely a big weakness of KFC.
Ineffective Franchisee Management
For any good brand, one of the key aspects for growth lies in franchise management. However, when it comes to KFC, management is left to the individual outlets. This can create a varying spectrum of quality among its outlets. There might be one outlet which has outstanding food and service quality while another one down the street is collecting negative publicity.
Key Opportunities of KFC
There are many opportunities that KFC can capitalize on to gain more traction and grow faster as a brand in the coming years.
Changing the Menu for the Health-Conscious Population
With an increasing number of health-conscious population, changing and adapting to their needs is a huge opportunity for KFC. This includes diversifying their menu to adding low fat and low-calorie foods, baked items, and other healthy snacks and foods. The rapidly urbanized lifestyle today has created many problems such as obesity, health risks, among others. Changing the menu to promote a healthy lifestyle can surely turn out to be a major opportunity and key driving factor in the coming years.
Catering to the Vegetarian Population
As a brand, KFC is well known for its selection of non-veg dishes and items. Many outlets in many countries today offer only non-veg options to their customers. With an increasing number of vegetarians, diversifying the menu to accommodate vegetarian options is also a massive opportunity for growth. While other restaurant chains such as McDonalds and Pizza hut are already catering to the vegetarian population, KFC is still yet to catch up with the trend. This can also play a huge role in attracting health-conscious individuals and improving the overall reputation of the brand.
Market Penetration Opportunities
With many places rapidly changing to an urbanized lifestyle, there are a lot of opportunities for KFC to increase its number of outlets and strengthen its presence. The rapidly changing economic trends, population boom, and urbanization are all key factors that are playing a major role today in the food industry.
Key Threats to KFC
The market today is highly volatile and competitive. Like any other brand, KFC also faces a number of different threats.
Competition
The fast-food industry today is gaining a lot of momentum and has seen the rise of many different brands and names. Apart from rival competitors in the fast-food industry such as Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, KFC also faces stiff competition from other big names in the fast-food chicken industry such as Five Star chicken, Chick-A-Fil, among others. This has made it increasingly difficult to stay relevant in the market.
Poor Franchisee Management
With the franchise system, it is not long before one outlet destroys the overall reputation of the brand. This can be a major threat to the success of the brand in the long run.
Health Consciousness
Health awareness campaigns and ads have driven away many people from traditional fast-food restaurants. This is a major threat in the coming years with an increasing number of people turning to healthy alternatives to fast food.
Quality of Food
With increasing raw material costs and problems with supply and distribution, low quality food is also a huge threat to the brand. This is a detailed SWOT analysis of KFC the fast-food giant. Though there are many weaknesses and threats that plague its growth, KFC still has a massive empire all around the world that it can capitalize upon. With just a few improvements and changes, it can quickly grow and establish itself as the number 1 name in the fast-food industry.
