Want a Big Mac? 400 McDonald’s in Thailand by 2020

[Gaybutton]

And on top of all of those, you can also order online and they'll deliver. Where did I put my barf bag?
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McThai looks to 400 outlets

by Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn

THE NATION
March 2, 2016

McThai Co, licensed operator of McDonald’s restaurants in Thailand, has set its 2020 vision to invest no less than Bt5 billion and significantly increase the number of stores from 227 today to 400 in five years.
The company will recruit 1,000 new staff every year over the next five years. McThai employs 9,000 people now.

Hester Chew, chairman of the executive committee and chief executive of McThai, said the company would invest at least Bt1 billion annually to open between 20 and 25 new McDonald's restaurants in each of the next five years.

The target is to double last year's sales figures by 2020.

Thailand now has the third-highest number of McDonald's stores in Asean, behind the Philippines and Malaysia.

The first McDonald's in the Philippines opened in 1981, and now there are about 600 operated by its local licensee in that country.

In Malaysia, McDonald's now has 300 restaurants after the first store was opened by its licensee on Jalan Bukit Bintang in Kuala Lumpur in 1982.

Under sub-licensing agreements, the Philippine and Malaysian operators have a policy of opening new McDonald's restaurants rapidly, at 30-40 and 20-30 stores per year respectively. The aim is to maintain economy of scale and to manage their costs better.

"In Thailand, McDonald's has operated our quick-service restaurant business for 31 years since the first store opened in 1985 at Amarin Plaza on Ratchaprasong Intersection," Chew said.

He added that Thailand still had tremendous opportunity for growth and further expansion of new McDonald's stores.

"We expect to grow steadily by double digits every year. Our key marketing strategy is to be a customer-centric organisation," he said.

Chew said McThai invested about Bt600 million last year, of which Bt500 million was for the opening of 17 new stores, and the rest on upgrading its information-technology system and renovation of existing restaurants.

"We plan to invest more than Bt900 million to open 25 new McDonald's stores this year. Half of the new McDonald's restaurants to be opened this year will be drive-through outlets," he said.

"We aim to grow our sales by between 16 and 18 per cent this year, up from single-digit growth at between 8 and 9 per cent posted last year."

He said the company expected overall business performance to get better beginning in the third quarter of this year driven by a more stable economy, greater consumer confidence, the government's expenditure on various infrastructure projects, and measures to support small and medium-sized enterprises.

The only challenging factor this year will be the global economic uncertainty, which might affect Thailand's tourism and export sectors.

McThai currently operates 227 McDonald's restaurants in Thailand, of which 170 are in Greater Bangkok. Four new stores have been opened since the beginning of this year, at Suanlum Night Bazaar Ratchada in Bangkok, Burirum Castle in Buri Ram, Big C Lopburi, and the PTT petrol station in Nakhon Chaisi district of Nakhon Pathom.

Petcharat Uthaisang, chief marketing officer of McThai, said more than 60 per cent of walk-in customers at quick-service restaurants were impulse buyers. Between 40 and 50 per cent of customers at McDonald's restaurants are students and white-collar workers aged between 20 and 29.

Key factors influencing their buying decision are cleanliness of products, good experience when visiting the store, value for money, and menu variety.

"We have strategically expanded into Web delivery and mobile applications to acquire new customers. Currently, home delivery contributes about 15 per cent of overall sales at McThai. We expect that contribution to increase to about 20 per cent by 2020," Petcharat said.

According to Kasikorn Research Centre, Thailand's overall restaurant market was worth between Bt375 billion and Bt385 billion last year, up by 4-6.8 per cent from 2014. Of that, between Bt108 billion and Bt110 billion worth was chain restaurants, which recorded growth of 6.9-8.9 per cent last year compared with 2014.

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[painai2]

All this fast food, Thais will end up looking like Americans! (I hope not.)

[Oliver]

I have the impression that the average go-go dancer today is a few pounds heavier than a decade ago. Perhaps I should say "average young Thai", particularly those of Chinese ancestry. I was walking past a school in an up-market part of Bangkok when the kids were going home; I was astonished how many of them were more than chubby.

[Alex]

Definitely, at least here in Bangkok I couldn't help but notice that people in average have been getting much fatter during the time I've lived here. Western-style fast food works its magic here, too... That's not the only factor, obviously, but a very visible one (fat people queuing up at McDonald's).