Aussies’ love of fried chicken fires record revenue
The operator of hundreds of KFC restaurants in Australia has achieved record revenue despite cost of living pressures as new products such as the Zinger Banh Mi attract more customers.
Collins Foods, which operates KFC restaurants in Australia, Germany and the Netherlands, posted a big jump in full-year net profit, rising to $44.2 million from $8.8 million previously.
Excluding the one-time $7.3 million class action settlement over ten-minute rest breaks, the result was a 280.5 percent increase to $47.1 million.
Sales revenue increased 8.6 percent to a record $1.6 billion in the year ending May 3.
The majority (296) of the 384 KFC restaurants are in Australia.
Collins Food also had Taco Bell restaurants in Australia, but is selling 20 of those businesses to a joint venture and closing the remaining seven, resulting in a $400,000 segment loss. The evacuation will be completed by the end of August.
The group has also seen a huge increase in online orders; this segment accounted for 43.2 per cent of total Australian sales of $1.2 billion in fiscal 2026.
“The KFC brand has continued to modernize, leveraging key product innovations including the Zinger Banh Mi, Upside Down Double and Hot & Crispy Wrap, all of which have attracted new users,” he told the stock exchange on Tuesday.
Sales continued to rise in the first eight weeks of the 2027 financial year, driven by a 6.7 per cent increase at its Australian KFC arm.
“Australia has continued to deliver strong performance and remains a key driver of Collins’ Food’s profitability,” he said.
Investors will receive a final dividend of 15 cents, bringing the year’s total to 28 cents.
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
