“A new chicken tender concept called Saucy is planning a move into Tampa Bay—and it’s backed by Yum! Brands Inc., the parent company of KFC,” says a recent Instagram post published by Tampa Latest.
It’s becoming a similar story other for PDQ locations in Florida (several PDQ’s are also slated to become Saucy restaurants in the Jacksonville market and elswhere), representing a pivot within the chicken space, which some have described as oversaturated in recent years. Coverage by the Tampa Bay Business Journal goes so far as to describe the current state of things as “the chicken chain wars.”
PDQ has felt the squeeze. Coverage by The Street back in September said the chain was closing 20% of its restaurants (but avoiding bankruptcy). As PDQ consolidates, Saucy by KFC is taking a shot at a new, yet straightforward tenders-based approach…