Joey Wat

Since taking the lead last year at Yum! Brands spin-off Yum China, CEO Joey Wat has carried out a major facelift of the group—overseeing the renovation 95% of KFC stores, which account for roughly 70% of Yum China’s revenues, and opening over 1,000 new KFC locations across the country. Under Wat, who served as president and CEO of KFC China before the spin-off in 2016 and then as group president and COO afterwards, Yum China has expanded at an average over two new stores a day. The group now has more than 8,700 locations across China and same-store sales, which declined for several years before the spin-off, are now rising marginally, bumping up 1% last year. Revenues are rising more quickly, up 8% to $8.42 billion in 2018.

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