Research firm Placer.ai took a look at how Restaurant Brands International (RBI) and Yum! Brands performed in 2024. Each company operates four restaurants—RBI owns Tim Hortons, Burger King, Firehouse Subs and Popeyes, and Yum! manages Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC and The Habit Burger Grill.
Placer.ai reported that Yum! Brands enjoyed overall visit and visits per location growth in all but one quarter, capping off Q4 2024 with a 0.8% increase in visits and a 1.6% increase in visits per location on a year-over-year (YoY) basis. RBI’s visits and visits per location reportedly hovered at or just below 2023’s levels in all but one quarter of the year, highlighting the “challenges facing the dining segment in 2024.”
Of the four RBI brands, Popeyes “enjoyed the strongest visitation patterns” throughout 2024, with YoY visit growth during most quarters. In June 2024, the QSR made boneless wings a permanent menu item. The company expanded its wings offering with boneless wings in six flavors: classic, honey lemon pepper, signature hot, honey BBQ, sweet n’ spicy and roasted garlic parmesan.
“Following Popeyes in visit growth was Tim Hortons—Canada’s leading coffee chain—which saw positive momentum in the first half of 2024, though visits dipped in the latter half of the year. And though Burger King’s visits were sluggish, the chain has been focusing on optimizing its store fleets with strong results,” wrote Placer.ai. “While overall visits across RBI’s brands were slightly below 2023 levels, their ability to remain close to last year’s numbers signals resilience.”
Yum! Brands delivered a strong performance in 2024, buoyed by Pizza Hut and Taco Bell’s “consistent growth.” Taco Bell in particular stood out, reported Placer.ai, driving foot traffic through promotions like its highly popular Taco Tuesday special. The chain experienced quarterly YoY visit growth throughout the year, culminating in a 2.1% increase in Q4 2024 relative to 2023. Taco Bell also released LTO options like chicken nuggets in 2024.
Meanwhile, KFC faced challenges with declining visits, according to Placer.ai. Since the start of 2025, KFC has launched “Saucy,” a new store prototype where sauce and dips are the star, and hopped on the meal-deal bandwagon with its $5 “lineup of five flavor-packed bowls for a limited time.
Overall, Placer.ai said that RBI and Yum! Brands experienced ups and downs throughout 2024, with some of their chains thriving while others showed modest visit declines.
Interested in how the c-store sector performed in 2024? During the 2025 NACS State of Industry Summit April 8-10 in Dallas, Dr. Thomas Weinandy, senior research economist at Upside, will present the “U.S. Economic Outlook for 2025 and Beyond.”