BirdShack Fried Chicken opens in Ocho Rios

IN ITS quest to open 20 stores in Jamaica during its five-year contract with the Alabama, USA-based Bird Shack Fried Chicken, local franchise holders, the Wayne Cummings-led Arya Holdings Limited, on Friday opened its fourth restaurant in Jamaica, this time in Ocho Rios, St Ann.

A $450- million investment, this is the third restaurant to be opened by Arya within the last six months, following the opening of the first Birdshack Fried Chicken restaurant at Whitter Village in Montego Bay in May 2022.

The Ocho Rios restaurant is located at a newly built plaza along the bypass that houses Fesco service station and is the first restaurant to be opened by the operators outside of Montego Bay.

Cummings, the group’s CEO; Omar Robinson, chief operating officer; and Robert Headley, director of operations, ensured that guests at the opening, which included good support from people in the banking and tourism sectors, were treated to some of the items on the restaurant’s menu, including their signature chicken flavours – cajun spicy, barbecue, and crispy.

Cummings said the Arya team, seasoned tourism veterans who, together, boast more than 70 years of experience in the sector, was driven to look outside the industry by the advent of COVID-19.

This resulted in a deal with BirdShack.

“We opened our first store in April of 2022 (at Whitter Village, Montego Bay),” he reminded the gathering. From there, a second store was opened at Barnett Tech Park in September 2023 and at Barnett Street, downtown Montego Bay, last December.

“And then we came to Ocho Rios for our first outside of our comfort zone. This is number four. We can do number five by no later than May,” Cummings promised. Already, space has been identified in the fast-growing Drax Hall community for the next store, he disclosed.

Now a two-year-old franchise, BirdShack enters a market dominated by KFC (of Kentucky, USA origin), which after 49 years in Jamaica, operates 42 stores; and Popeye’s, (of Louisiana origin), which currently runs 15 stores, having entered Jamaica 20 years ago.

With four locations, BirdShack is already the third-largest US fried chicken franchise operating in Jamaica behind KFC and Popeye’s and could challenge Popeye’s as the second largest if projections hold over the next few years.

BirdShack serves fried chicken with potato wedges, chicken sandwiches, cornbread rolls, and Coca-Cola, among other items.

PHOTOS BY CARL GILCHRIST Wayne Cummings, CEO, Arya Holdings (fourth left), cuts the ribbon to open BirdShack Fried Chicken in Ocho Rios. Others in the photo, from left, Omar Robinson, COO, Arya Holdings; Dr Ransford Davidson, St Ann Chamber of Commerce president; Sheryl Wilks, HR director, Arya Holdings, and Robert Headley, director of operations, Arya Holdings.