Game for a quick bite?
If you are a fast food junkie, here’s some good news for you. The US-based quick service restaurant (QSR) chain Quiznos is expanding its footprint in India with plans to set up around 150 outlets in the northern and the western regions of the country over the next three to five years. Now in its 31st year, Denver-based Quiznos is an international chain designed for “today’s busy consumers who are looking for a tasty and freshly prepared alternative (subs, salads, pizzas and so on) to the traditional fast-food restaurants”.
A couple of months ago Quiznos started its India operations by signing a master franchisee agreement with Apollo Elixirs for southern India, Goa and Sri Lanka. A few weeks ago, it entered the markets of the north and west armed with a master franchisee agreement with Sub-One Hospitality Services (a Delhi-based restaurant management company). Commenting on its India partners, Lee Vala, chief development officer, International, Quiznos, says, “The biggest strength of these companies is that their teams know the Indian consumer and what they expect from a QSR. Our partners will adapt the menus to each region, but overall they will focus on a warm, toasty meal in a comfortable environment, with plenty of seating space.”
A Quiznos outlet may take any form — a kiosk, a set-up in a food court or a dine-in restaurant. Besides, its signature toasted subs, pizzas and salads, the chain hopes to offer Indianised options such as paneer tikka, tandoori chicken, lamb seekh, aloo corn and spinach tikka. While it didn’t share too many details, the company says it is looking at the print media as its most important advertising platform.
Quiznos currently has about 4,000 outlets globally, out of which 650 are outside the US. According to the company officials, Subway is its only rival in India. Its flagship restaurant in south India, located in Film Nagar, Hyderabad, has beaten expectations as far as traffic and sales in the region is concerned, says the company. While Quiznos seem to have ambitious plans in India, in the US, it is embroiled in a lot of troubles — starting with mounting debts and decreasing sales to issues with its franchisees over price gouging and poor marketing strategies, especially in terms of discount promotions. Probably one reason why the company is looking at markets outside of the US with keen interest.
The other reason could be the sheer growth potential here. According to Technopak Advisors, QSRs and cafes will be the fastest growing category (approximately 30 per cent per annum) among organised food service players in India. The factors largely responsible for the growth are greater demand of convenience foods, the growing incidence of eating while doing other activities, the emergence of global cuisines, besides many more eating out occasions/ options. Experts say it is the international players that are more aggressive in their expansion plans: The number of outlets owned by the top currently is expected to increase four times over the next 10 years, according to Technopak estimates. Indian brands, on the other hand, are more conservative in their expansion strategy.