Thunderbird Fried Chicken

About Thunderbird Fried Chicken

Wings and fried chicken concept founded by Matt Harris in 2015, initially as BBQ Lab and operating out of an old ambulance. The business became Thunderbird Fried Chicken in April 2017 and received investment from private equity firm TriSpan in 2019, upon which it made it brick and mortar debut. It has since grown to six sites across London and six more in Parkdean Resorts locations, having signed its first franchise agreement in June 2021 with the holiday parks operator. In January 2022, Thunderbird opened a trial delivery site in Milton Keynes in a joint venture with hotel chain Jurys Inn - available through Deliveroo out of the Jurys Inn kitchen in Milton Keynes’ The Hub. In June 2023, the business said it had begun talking to prospective franchisees as it looks at growing further outside London and believes it can grow to at least 150 sites. Gilchrist said: “We feel there’s a big opportunity for a genuine British fried chicken brand in the UK and believe we can grow to at least 150 stores. The brand has focused on London for our own operated stores, leaving plenty of opportunities to build geographical franchise relationships across the country. Our attractive and scalable franchise proposition is backed up by a fully integrated UK supply chain with industry leading training and systems, including state-of-the-art digital ordering screens and speed of service data.” In June 2024, Gilchrist told Propel: “We’ve right sized the whole model, which also helps with franchising, and it’s meant we’ve moved the dial and are starting to make cash, which means any investment, rather than being operational costs, starts to become capital investment. And that puts us in a position to go to TriSpan and say we’ve got a solid business now, this is where the commercials are, this is what the top line is looking like.” In terms of franchising, Gilchrist said there are conversations taking place with “some of the bigger operators that are global-based franchisees in the quick service restaurant and transport hub categories”. In February 2026, launched the first site under spin-off concept Strip Shack. A more compact, extraction-free model designed for non-traditional sites, the first Strip Shack opened at Boxpark Shoreditch in London. Gilchrist said: “It’s more of a grab-and-go concept, designed for smaller spaces, with or without extraction. With the lower capex and running costs, it’s a more efficient concept. Not only have we reduced the footprint, but we have simplified the overall operation, which means less labour and less complexity. We see Strip Shack opening doors into sports venues, stadiums and music festivals, but also within such trading spaces as shopping centres, stations etc, given our ability to operate in small spaces and without extraction.”

Why franchise with Thunderbird Fried Chicken

• ✓The company’s offer is fast-casual with a premium menu which is adaptable to meet local tastes and occasions. It has a flexible footprint of 900-2,500 square feet, meaning it works in a variety of locations, from high street to food markets. Desired locations are high street (1,400-2,000sqft), shopping centres (1,400-2,000sqft for mall, 600sqft for kiosk), transport hubs (1,400-2,000sqft for mall, 600sqft for kiosk) and container/kiosks (600-1,000sqft). The business has a streamlined simple and robust national and international supply chain, an experienced management team and sector leading chairman. It has an enormous range of training materials that cover every aspect of the business, plus brand design materials and marketing support. As part of the agreement, the business will conduct a minimum of two audits per location per year (or more depending on the agreement). Each audit will be a minimum of two days and shall be conducted during usual business hours. The business said average weekly sales range from £16,000 through to £35,000-plus. Cost of sale is 25% and labour 26%, while royalty is 5% of sales (with aggregator discount) and marketing 1% of sales. It is seeking experienced multi-unit franchisees or whole country territories, with markets of interest including Ireland, mainland Europe and the Middle East. Average start-up costs are £500,000. Founder Matt Harris said: “My vision for Thunderbird is to build a business that’s loved equally by our employees and guests. If people love eating with us and working with us, then success will inevitably follow.”