Popeyes Puts Chicken Back at the Center of Its Brand Amid Sales Pressure

Popeyes is going back to the one thing it believes can pull the brand out of its slump.

The chain has launched "THAT Chicken from Popeyes," its first campaign with new creative agency Anomaly.

It establishes its hand-battered chicken, Cajun seasoning, and Louisiana kitchen traditions as the clearest answer to a packed chicken category.

The move comes at a difficult point for Popeyes.

U.S. same-store sales fell 5.2% in the second quarter, marking the chain’s sixth consecutive quarterly decline.

Restaurant Brands International executives have pointed to value, food quality, operations and a renewed focus on core menu items as priorities for the turnaround.

That makes the campaign more than a new advertising platform, giving Popeyes a tighter argument for why consumers should choose it.

Especially when chicken chains are competing aggressively on price, novelty, and convenience.

Inspired by the brand’s "Love That Chicken from Popeyes" jingle, the campaign uses the familiar musical property as a bridge to a new proposition.

There’s chicken, and then there’s "THAT Chicken from Popeyes."

A music-video-inspired hero spot developed by its AOR brings the sights and sounds of a Louisiana kitchen into the advertising, including the chicken prep and the people behind it.

Popeyes says the creative is designed as a sensory experience, inviting viewers to hear the crunch, feel the steam, and imagine the flavors.

Notably, it takes a similar approach to the brand's earlier efforts in the UK, using sights and sound to bring people to the restaurant and reel them in with chicken. 

"Popeyes has always been rooted in the traditions of a real Louisiana kitchen, where bold flavor, quality ingredients and generous portions come together in every meal," said Matt Rubin, CMO of Popeyes.

The campaign arrives as Popeyes tries to make its long-standing brand identity more useful to the business.

Its Louisiana roots have been part of the chain’s positioning for years, but the new work gives those cues a direct role in its argument around taste and value.

The Meal Makes the Case

Popeyes is supporting the campaign with a familiar value proposition, bringing back the $6 Big Box for a limited time.

The meal includes two pieces of Signature Chicken or three tenders, two regular sides, and a buttermilk biscuit at participating U.S. restaurants.

The offer has appeared repeatedly since its original $5 Bonafide Big Box debut in 2014, including multiple runs as the $6 Big Box since 2022.

This repetition is crucial.

RBI said the chain’s $5 value platform has been driving higher repeat purchase behavior.

Meanwhile, the $6 Big Box and $20 Family Meal are part of its effort to make value easier for guests to understand.

Popeyes is also introducing three limited-time pineapple drinks starting at $3.49:

• Pineapple Lemonade
• Frozen Pineapple Lemonade
• Pineapple Iced Tea

Overall, the launch places Popeyes in the middle of a highly competitive fast-food beverage push, with Taco Bell and Chick-fil-A also promoting pineapple-based drinks.

It's the combination that gives Popeyes leverage and several reasons to visit while keeping the chicken as the central message.

Making the Brand Work Harder

Popeyes' strength lies in its most recognizable asset.

What it needed to do was attach current offers and products to the same underlying promise.

This matters in a category where brand loyalty is valuable but increasingly difficult to own.

Circana found that loyalty members accounted for 39% of U.S. restaurant visits in 2024, while visiting enrolled brands at twice the rate of nonmembers.

Several key lessons stand out for brands trying to turn established assets into business drivers:

• Make the signature product do the talking: If one product carries the strongest memory structure, build campaigns around the reasons it deserves that reputation.
• Connect brand advertising to an immediate reason to visit: The $6 Big Box gives the campaign a concrete purchase opportunity.
• Refresh familiar assets instead of discarding them: Reworking the iconic jingle gives Popeyes continuity while allowing Anomaly to establish a new creative platform.

The real test will be whether "THAT Chicken from Popeyes" can make the brand’s distinctive product story easier to remember the moment consumers are deciding where to eat.

Our Take: Can Popeyes Make Chicken Feel Important Again?

A chicken sandwich can become the supporting actor in its own commercial, and we've watched enough fast-food commercials to know that.

Popeyes is smart to put the messy, noisy business of making its food back on screen, because that is where the brand has something competitors cannot simply discount away.

The interesting question is whether the same idea can become a useful organizing principle for packaging, restaurants, social content, and future product launches.

If it does, Anomaly has more than a campaign on its hands.

It has a working system for making Popeyes recognizable before the first bite.

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