Wendy’s to open 40-50 stores in 4 years

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NEW DELHI: Wendy’s, the world’s third largest burger chain after McDonald’s and Burger King, is set to open 40-50 stores here in the next four years at a cost of around Rs 2 crore per restaurant. Its first store will open in Gurgaon next month and the company is looking to focus on North India before expanding to other parts of the country.

Prices of burgers at Wendy’s will start from around Rs 100. “Our key differentiators will be food quality and service,” said Sanjay Chhabra, director of Sierra Nevada Restaurants, the franchisee for Wendy’s in India. “It’s won’t be a self-service format. Food will be served at the table.”

Interestingly, Wendy’s is among the first global burger chains to launch here before setting up shop in China, which boasts a much bigger fast-food market estimated at $178 billion compared to the Indian branded QSR market pegged at around $13 billion.

On the other hand, India has become a hot destination for international burger chains, which are looking to expand to newer markets in the face of rising operating costs in developed ones. Big players such as, Burger King, Fat Burger and Johnny Rockets have opened their stores here. “Burgers, especially gourmet, are some of the most searched food items online,” said Pankaj Chaddah, COO of restaurant-search app Zomato.

Though India’s QSR market is small, it is expected to grow by around 26% year-on-year, according to market research firm Crisil. However, same-store average growth of around 6-8% will witness a drop due to increased completion in the market.

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