Los Angeles-based El Pollo Loco Inc. has signed an eight-unit franchise agreement with EPL Missouri LLC to develop the brand throughout the Kansas City area, as well as other parts of Kansas and Missouri over the next 10 years
“We are thrilled to partner with EPL Missouri LLC to expand our reach into Kansas and Missouri,” El Pollo Loco CEO Larry Roberts said in a company press release. “We are building on the momentum of our core business and firmly establishing the foundation for successful growth. We continue to see interest from both existing and new franchisees to bring El Pollo Loco to new markets and look forward to working with them as we look to expand across the U.S.”.
Kansas and Missouri are untapped markets for El Pollo Loco, said Shawn Choudry, a partner at EPL, which has a leadership team with over 50 years of combined retail experience in the restaurant, grocery, liquor and gas station spaces.
“The brand is iconic and the menu is different and better than typical fast food,” Choudry said in the release. “This is certainly a place that has the right recipe for success.”
The restaurants will introduce El Pollo Loco’s new prototype design, launched last year to better meet the demands of the company’s off-premise business. It features a dining room that potentially opens to a patio area, digital menu boards, drive-thrus and “Pollo To-Go” cubbies for mobile to-go and delivery orders. Each restaurant will occupy approximately 2,400 square feet and employ as many as 50 people.
Los Angeles-based El Pollo Loco has nearly 500 locations and is looking to expand its national footprint over the next several years, focusing on the Northwest, Southwest and Midwest.
