Wingstop opened its first international restaurant in Mexico.
The Texas-based chain was founded in Garland in 1994 by Antonio Swad and Bernadette Fiaschetti. It began franchising in 1997, allowing the brand to expand beyond its original U.S. footprint. Mexico became Wingstop’s first overseas market in 2010, marking the beginning of its international growth.
Mexico was followed by expansion elsewhere, including Singapore in Southeast Asia and the Philippines in 2014. Wingstop later entered the United Kingdom, Canada, and other markets. Because the chain’s international presence now spans many countries, newer locations can make it easy to forget that Mexico came first.
A common mix-up is Singapore, which was announced as Wingstop’s first Southeast Asian market—not its first international market overall. The distinction matters: Mexico was the company’s first country outside the United States, while Singapore was an important later step in its Asian expansion.