Sphera Franchise Group, Romania’s leading food service industry leader, has marked the beginning of 2026 by opening its first two new KFC restaurants. The expansion targets both the local market, through a Drive Thru unit in Bucharest, and the international market, through a restaurant located in San Donà di Piave, Italy, with the total investment allocated to these projects amounting to approximately EUR 2.1 million.
In Bucharest, the new restaurant strengthens the network in the capital through a Drive Thru format. Marian Gogu, general manager of KFC Romania, described the format as a “strong, multichannel” format that responds effectively to today’s consumer needs and capitalizes on the brand’s visibility in the urban environment. The official pointed to the significant potential for further expansion that the city offers.
Internationally, the group has opened a food court in Italy, in the Centro Piave Shopping Center in San Donà di Piave, in the province of Venice. The location is approximately 235 square meters and brings the total number of KFC units operated by Sphera Franchise Group in Italy to 19.
The Sphera Franchise Group owns the companies that operate the KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell franchise brands in Romania, KFC in Chisinau and Italy, and the Cioccolatitaliani brand in Italy. Recently, the portfolio was expanded by acquiring the franchise rights for Hard Rock Café in Romania and the Republic of Moldova. The group operates over 175 restaurants and employs around 5,000 people. The company is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange under the symbol SFG and is included in the main BET index and the MSCI Frontier Markets indices.