Popeyes just launched its first store in China, and photos show how not even a pandemic can keep a horde of fans from their chicken sandwich

• Popeyes opened its first Chinese location in Shanghai on May 15, despite the ongoing pandemic.
• Crowds of people swarmed the restaurant, illustrating how Popeyes' famous chicken sandwich has pandemic-proofed its brand.
• While other fast-food restaurants are seeing declines in sales due to the pandemic, Popeyes is the only brand whose sales have continued to be robust.
• After such a strong opening, Popeyes is well-positioned to take on the Chinese market and start opening more of the 1,500+ restaurants the chain plans to open.

Remember the good old days when all people cared about was getting their hands on a Popeyes chicken sandwich?

Those good old days are back in Shanghai, where Popeyes opened its first restaurant in China on May 15, marking the brand's most successful launch in its 48-year history.

Popeyes is one of the few brands to enjoy continued success during the pandemic, thanks to the power of the chicken sandwich. While most chains have reported significant declines in sales over the last quarter, Popeyes reported a 29.2% year-over-year sales increase. And even though KFC is currently the most popular fast food chain in China, Popeyes' arrival in the country poses an undeniable threat to the colonel's territory.

Perhaps those numbers gave Popeyes the confidence to stick to its plan to open its first Chinese location last week. Take a look at the incredible turnout in pictures below.

The new Popeyes restaurant is situated on Shanghai's Huahai Road, a commercial thoroughfare that cuts through the heart of the city.

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Source: South China Morning Post

Popeyes is the last of Restaurant Brands International's brands to launch in China. It's also RBI's most recent acquisition.

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Source: QSR Magazine.

In July 2019, the fried chicken chain announced that it planned to open over 1,500 restaurants in the country.

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Source: QSR Magazine

China started easing its stringent lockdowns in April as the coronavirus case count dropped..

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Read more: China is relaxing its coronavirus lockdowns, but the rules are still more restrictive than US cities under quarantine

Even with new social distancing measures in place, customers showed up in droves to eat at China's first Popeyes.

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The long lines and large crowds proved that the chain's meteoric rise doesn't stop in America.

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Another boon for Popeyes' success in China is that Chick-fil-A, one of its main competitors in the chicken sandwich space, isn't likely to expand there anytime soon, thanks to its slow and careful approach to expansion.

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Read more: The church of chicken: The inside story of how Chick-fil-A used Christian values and a 'clone army' to build a booming business that's defying the retail apocalypse and taking over America

Chick-fil-A has locations in just three countries: the US, Canada, and the UK. The chain opened its first UK location just last year.

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Source: Chick-fil-A is ramping up its international expansion, opening its first location in the UK

Popeyes, on the other hand, has locations in 25 countries around the world.

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Read more: Popeyes sticks to China expansion plan in spite of virus

Any international brand dreams of carving out a piece of China's immense market, and Popeyes is well on its way to doing so.

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After all, China is home to some of the world's most dedicated fried chicken fans. In 2014, a Sichuan woman made the news for spending a week in a KFC restaurant after her relationship ended.

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Source: New York Magazine