KFC has rolled out its Kwench drinks range to all 58 of its restaurants in Scotland. The rollout is part of a £38 million investment by KFC and its franchise partners in dedicated drinks counters across the UK and Ireland. KFC says Kwench sales have more than doubled since the start of 2026.
The Scottish rollout was reported on 13 October 2026 by Grocery Gazette and Restaurant Online. Kwench is a range of 13 made-to-order drinks, including milkshakes, iced coffees, matcha, boba refreshers and sparkling lemonades, priced from £2.49. It is now on sale in KFC restaurants from Edinburgh and Glasgow to Aberdeen, Inverness and Dumfries, with a limited-edition Millionaire Shake added for the Scottish launch. Restaurant Online lists Krunch shakes among the range, alongside the boba refreshers and sparkling lemonades.
A £38 million investment shared with franchise partners
The £38 million covers dedicated Kwench counters across the UK and Ireland, and both reports say it comes from KFC and its franchise partners together. The split between the brand and its franchisees has not been published. This matters because around 95% of KFC’s UK restaurants are run by franchise partners, according to the brand’s published franchise information, one of the highest proportions among the fast food brands recruiting UK operators.Scotland comes after the range was rolled out across the wider UK following the Manchester trial.
Kwench started as a pilot in 38 Manchester restaurants in 2025, launched nationally in 2026 and reached 500 restaurants by the end of June. For each franchisee, a dedicated counter means a fit-out inside the restaurant, but neither report gives a cost per restaurant. KFC UK asks new franchise partners for £5 million in assets and £2 million in liquid funds, according to its published franchise requirements, far above the £85,000 mean total investment recorded in what it costs to open a franchise in the UK.
Drinks sold outside mealtimes
KFC presents the drinks as a way to bring customers in at other times of day. According to Grocery Gazette, more than half of speciality drinks are now bought outside mealtimes. KFC has not published Kwench turnover figures, only the statement that sales have more than doubled this year.
Leo Sloley, strategy and innovation director at KFC UK and Ireland, said: “Scotland already knows and loves us for our chicken.” He described the range as “a fresh new side of KFC”. According to Restaurant Online, he also said the drinks give customers more reasons to choose KFC and new occasions to visit through the day. Each drink is made to order at the dedicated counter.
KFC’s estate in Scotland
KFC says it has spent almost £6 million on its Scottish restaurants this year and opened three new sites there. It puts its Scottish workforce at 2,585 jobs and estimates its contribution to the Scottish economy at £60 million, both figures from the company. Neither report names the franchisees running the Scottish restaurants, nor does it say which of the three new sites are franchised. The chicken market in Scotland is also getting more crowded: on the same day, Chick-fil-A announced that its first Scottish restaurant will open on 29 October in Hamilton, in a former KFC drive-thru.
