KFC is banking heavily on a franchise-heavy model for expansion

While it operated some 70 company-owned outlets till recently, KFC recently handed over 13 existing restaurants in Kerala and Goa to Devyani International

Higher capital spend and higher operating expenses for company-owned restaurants on the one hand, and the ease in expansion through a franchisee model on the other, have encouraged many restaurant companies to shift towards a fully franchised model. Case in point McDonald’s. Globally McDonald’s is moving towards a situation where 95 per cent of its stores will be franchised.

KFC, that operates as a subsidiary of Yum! Restaurants in India since 1995, a year before of its biggest rival McDonald’s set foot in the country, seems to be moving in the same direction after years of indifferent growth. However, a franchise-based