Savourites Group unveils expansion plans

Kolkata-based Savourites Group, which specialises in Bengali cuisines, is planning to diversify its business into ready-to-eat products, outdoor catering, corporate catering, tea outlets as well as a chain of sweet shops.

Besides, it will expand its existing restaurant business. The company has earmarked an investment of Rs 12 crore for the expansion in the next six months.

Savourites opened its The Grand Trunk Road restaurant in Bangalore on Monday and is planning an all-India rollout of The Grand Trunk Road restaurants by 2009. The company already has a restaurant called '6 BallyGunge Place' in Bangalore, which will also be opened in other cities.

The company's tea chain will be called 'Gup Shup,' and the first one will be opened in Bangalore next month. Savourities is planning 200 outlets of Gup Shup by 2009.

The tea outlets will offer simple teas starting from Rs 10 and the company is targeting the middle-class customer for these outlets. The sweet shops will come up under the name '6 BP Sweet Tooth'. 6 BP Sweet Tooth will also be opened in Bangalore and then expand to Chennai, Hyderabad etc.

Four Sweet Tooth outlets will be opened in Bangalore in the next six months. It is also in talks with Reliance Retail for opening its sweet shop outlets in their stores.

The company plans to raise funds for the expansion internally as well as through an IPO, which will be floated by March 31, 2007, and a bank loan.

Savourites is also going to enter the catering business in Bangalore targeting the non-south Indian IT professionals.

"We believe there is huge market for catering in these IT companies. We specialise in Bengali cuisine and I think we will find a big market here," one of the company's promoters S Ramani said.