Fast food giant goes bankrupt: Sells off its final restaurants

Sailormen Inc., one of the largest franchise operators of Popeyes restaurants in the U.S., has completed the sale of its final major group of restaurants as part of its bankruptcy proceedings. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida approved the sale of 23 Popeyes restaurants in the Orlando area to SBH Foods PLK LLC for 2.67 million dollars.

INITIAL SALE DID NOT PROCEED

The restaurants in question were initially planned to be purchased by RFI Ventures LLC. However, the sale was canceled after the buyer failed to complete the transaction within the specified timeframe. Following this, the restaurants were put back on the market and were subsequently purchased by SBH Foods PLK LLC.

In June, Sailormen had already transferred a total of 97 Popeyes restaurants to various companies. Within this scope, 50 restaurants were sold to Pulse Restaurant Group LLC, 16 to Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Inc., 5 to SBH Foods PLK LLC, and 3 to 61 Biscuits LLC.

BRANCHES WITHOUT BUYERS WERE CLOSED

The company also decided to close 39 Popeyes restaurants for which no buyers could be found. According to documents submitted to the court, the termination of operations at these loss-making branches is aimed at achieving cost savings of over 1 million dollars per year.

POPEYES CONTINUES OPERATIONS

While it was noted that the bankruptcy process only covers the franchise operator Sailormen Inc., it was stated that the Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen brand continues its operations as normal.

THE ROAD TO BANKRUPTCY

Founded in 1987 with 10 restaurants, Sailormen was operating 136 Popeyes restaurants in Florida and Georgia and employing approximately 2,900 people prior to its bankruptcy filing.

The company filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in January 2026 following failed sales attempts, an inability to meet credit obligations, lawsuits, and store closures.