The owners of Wingstop, a fast food chain targeted at social media-obsessed Gen Z, have said they plan to open up to 100 stores over the next five years, a boost for Britain’s ailing hospitality market.
Tom Grogan and Herman Sahota, who head up Lemon Pepper Holdings, the master franchisee of Wingstop in the UK, already have 43 restaurants across the UK, including 18 sites in London.
The pair, who run the business alongside the chain’s third co-owner Saul Lewin, had no prior experience in the food and beverage game before bringing the popular American fast-food chain across the pond.
“Our backgrounds previously were in real estate and private equity, never in restaurants,” Sahota told City A.M.
“We actually reached out to Wingstop through a cold email,” Grogan added, explaining it took just 18 months to convince the team in the US as well as a handful of investors to back their endeavour.
“We’d identified a market position for a fast casual player to come into the UK, similar to what we’ve seen with Five Guys in the burger space,” he explained.
Wingstop had already been a hit in the US for a number of decades, with a sprawling estate of over 1,400 sites. The business was listed on the New York market back in 2015.
The franchise’s aesthetic is youthful and energetic, and the brand is popular amongst fans of hip-hop and rap. This is much to the credit of rapper Rick Ross, who acquired a number of sites in the US.
“After tasting Wingstop’s signature Lemon Pepper-flavoured wings in Miami, I knew this was a franchise I wanted to add to my investments,” the ‘Stay Hustlin’ rapper explained in a press statement.
Grogan, 33, said this was a culinary and cultural experience he wanted to emulate in the UK.
“For the last 10-15 years, the food and beverage sector has been fairly stagnant from both a consumer and a marketing perspective.
“We thought we could bring [Wingstop] to the UK and really create a marketing strategy that talks to Gen Z, and youth culture, ” he explained.
Wingstop’s core market is people aged 16 to early 20s, and it sells a variety of fried chicken and chips.
The business has collaborated with brands popular with the youth of today such as JD Sports, launching a Youtube series presented by content creators.
“Wingstop is an aspirational brand for a lot of kids across the UK. And we build on that aspiration through partnerships with people like JD Sports, GymShark, and Foot Asylum,” Grogan said.
However, arguably its most successful marketing tool has been the Chinese social media platform Tiktok.
Wingstop UK has close to half a million followers on the app. Its top performing video, which has over 11m views, shows pictures of its products over a noughties Beyonce track.
They have also collaborated with social media stars such as Realstepz – who has 3m followers – with a video of the creator working behind the till at the store garnering over 5m views.
Sahota said: “Our core consumer is between 16 to early 20’s. I guess the channel they use and most engage with is Tiktok. We had to pivot towards that and create content which is far more human and comes through to that customer.”
A handful of “culturally relevant” social media stars have also been given a ‘black card’ which gives access to unlimited wings at its stores.
Wingstop, one of the biggest success stories in the fast-casual market in recent years, has major expansion plans in the UK.
Sahota said: “In assessing the UK market, we’ve identified a significant opportunity for expansion, driven by the fact that chicken is more widely consumed compared to other cuisines.
“Based on thorough research and an understanding of our competitive landscape, we’re confident in our capability to open at least 100 sites in the next five years, with a total market potential to exceed 300 locations.”
They have already laid out plans to open 15 stores across the UK this year.
Its biggest Wingstop site so far will open at Stratford City Westfield. Located on the first floor opposite the World Food Court and will span a 5,000-square-foot space with over 160 covers.
They are also poised to open a location near Clapham Common.
Like many businesses, they have not been immune to inflationary pressures, but the pair said they have only raised prices twice and remain in good financial health.
Grogan said: “Our financial trajectory for January to December 2024 is set to reach the nine-figure mark in revenue.
“Despite our aggressive expansion strategy, the business remains healthily profitable at the group level, a testament to the effectiveness of our operational efficiencies and the strength of our business model.”