Good morning, Broadsheet readers! The GOP presidential contest is down to two, Spelman University receives a $100 million donation, and the CEO behind KFC and Taco Bell in China says Chinese customers are still buying from American brands. Have a productive Monday!
– Fast food politics. Joey Wat was born in China and moved to Hong Kong at age 9. For 10 years of her career, she worked in the U.K., turning around the brands Superdrug and Savers. Then she got a call inviting her to rehabilitate another brand: KFC China.
In 2016, Yum! Brands, the company behind KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut, decided to spin off the China versions of its restaurants to form Yum China. KFC stores needed to be improved and the company had to build a digital business. The opportunity came at the perfect time for Wat; she wanted to move back to China so her U.K.-raised son could better learn the language. In 2018, Wat became CEO of the new company Yum China, now with $9.5 billion in revenue. The job landed her at No. 83 on Fortune‘s Most Powerful Women list last year.
Yum! Brands spun off its China restaurants because they operated under an entirely different business model, Wat explained on a recent episode of the Fortune podcast Leadership Next. While Taco Bell and Pizza Hut locations are usually franchised in the U.S., Yum China operates the majority of its own locations.
There are other differences too. About 60% of food sold at China’s KFCs is made in an oven, rather than fried. Outside China, not all KFCs have ovens in their kitchens, Wat says. Today, Yum China has 14,000 restaurants in 1,900 cities. About 10,000 of those restaurants are KFCs—about one-third of all KFC locations in the world.
On the podcast, Fortune CEO Alan Murray points out that Wat is “running a bunch of very American brands” at a Chinese company. Wat says there’s no sign that Chinese customers are turning away from American brands amid U.S.-China tension.
Many international brands have reported depressed revenue from Chinese consumers, blaming the country’s slow emergence from COVID following easing of restrictions in late 2022. Wat argues that, even in a tough consumer economy, there’s still plenty of runway ahead for a fast-food company that reaches one-third of China’s population.
Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
@_emmahinchliffe
The Broadsheet is Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women. Subscribe here.
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Then there were two. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ended his candidacy for the GOP presidential nomination this weekend, turning the race into a one-on-one contest between Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump. Haley's team has often tried to position the race as a two-person competition, although Trump is firmly ahead in polls. NBC News
- Changing fields. Once titled the best women’s soccer player in the world, Sam Mewis is officially retiring due to complications from a knee injury she suffered on the field seven years ago. Just 31 years old, Mewis will now serve as editor-in-chief of women’s soccer at the Men In Blazers Media Network, aiming to grow coverage of the sport.Wall Street Journal
- Major gift.Women’s HBCU Spelman University received a $100 million donation from billionaire Ronda Stryker and her husband, the school announced last week. Spelman said the donation is the largest in HBCU history and a majority of it will be used to fund scholarships. Fortune
- Freezing frenzy.Thousands of women have signed up to learn more about an egg-freezing program in Tokyo that offers up to ¥300,000 ($2,025) toward the procedure. The government anticipated that 200 women would sign up for the initiative aimed at raising the country's low birth rate. Bloomberg
- Joining forces. Israel's military campaign following Hamas's Oct. 7 attacks has effectively ended a longstanding debate: whether women should be allowed in combat. A majority of men and women now support increasing the number of women in combat roles. New York Times
ON MY RADAR
The wine heiresses apparent New York Times
The anxious precision of Jacqueline Novak’s comedy New Yorker
Malia Obama debuts her first film at Sundance, hopes it makes people 'feel a bit less lonely' Vanity Fair
PARTING WORDS
“I’m flowing and feeling and learning as I go. I’m following my heart. And the unknown is freaking scary. But I’m also excited."
—Olympic gold medalist Carissa Moore on creating a new life outside of surfing
This is the web version of The Broadsheet, a daily newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women. Sign up to get it delivered free to your inbox.
