Popeyes U.S. comps -5.2% Q2’26Wingstop domestic SSS -7.5% Q2’26KFC U.S. units 3,523 YE’25Dave’s unit growth +52.3% FY’25Chick-fil-A AUV $9.16MCane’s systemwide $5.48B FY’25Franchisee QSR cap 6.85%Corporate QSR cap 5.85%Category growth +5.3% ’25Wings wholesale $0.98/lb YE’25
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Home / Operators / Pulse Restaurant Group
Operator profile

Pulse Restaurant Group

Newly formed Popeyes
50
Chicken units
50
Total units
Florida
Headquarters
Tampa
Primary geography
Tallahassee, Pensacola, Jacksonville

Known activity

  • Acquired 50 Popeyes restaurants in Tampa, Tallahassee, Pensacola and Jacksonville out of the Sailormen bankruptcy for $2.69M1 (2026)
  • Established by Sailormen CEO David Damato1 (2026)
CSW Analysis

A brand-new 50-unit Florida Popeyes platform created out of a bankruptcy at roughly $54,000 per restaurant. Whatever the operating challenges, the basis is extraordinary — and a newly recapitalized operator with 50 boxes and no legacy debt is exactly the profile that becomes an acquirer within 24 months.

Transactions

DateTypeDetailValue
2026Bankruptcy saleSailormen, Inc. — 97 Popeyes restaurants
Pulse Restaurant Group 50 units / $2.69M; RFI Ventures 23 units / $2.5M; Popeyes corporate 16 units / $9.6M; SBH Foods PLK 5 units / $650K; 61 Biscuits 3 units / $1.11M. Approximately 33 additional locations closed via lease rejection.1
$16.55M

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Related coverage

2026-05Operators

Bankrupt Popeyes franchisee Sailormen sells 97 restaurants for $16.55M to five buyers1

What it means for the Chicken Wars: Read the per-store prices: Popeyes corporate paid $600K per restaurant for 16 Miami units; 61 Biscuits paid $370K per restaurant in West Palm Beach; Pulse paid about $54K per restaurant for 50 units across Tampa, Tallahassee, Pensacola and Jacksonville. That spread is a live map of where Popeyes trade areas still work and where they don't. Thirty-three restaurants found no buyer at all and went dark through lease rejection.

Sources

Every figure on this page is attributed. CSW does not publish estimates as facts — where a number is unavailable it is shown as “—”, and where a figure is derived arithmetically from two published figures it is marked as derived.

  1. [1] QSR Magazine — One of Popeyes' Largest Franchisees Sells 97 Restaurants out of Bankruptcy (2026)