Korean Chicken Shops Fall by 3,000 in 3 Years; 647 Brands Now Registered
Creatrip Team
4 months ago
Nearly 40,000 chicken restaurants operate in South Korea, but their number fell about 4% in 2023 to 39,789 — roughly 3,000 fewer than in 2020. Employment in the sector also dipped slightly. Despite the overall decline, franchised outlets rose to about 29,805 (around 75% of all chicken shops), driven by increased use of delivery apps after COVID-19. The number of registered chicken franchise brands climbed to 647 in 2023 (from 477 in 2020), though many are very small: 63% have fewer than 10 outlets, while only 55 brands have over 100. Two brands, bhc and BBQ, each exceed 2,000 stores. Industry pressures include high delivery-app fees and competition from free-delivery promotions, while new rules requiring a year of operating a direct store to register a franchise led some brands to cancel registrations.
