People in Thailand really like their baked goods and there could soon be more places to buy croissants or buns. The joint venture between Singapore-based BreadTalk Co and Minor Food Group is planning to open as many of 200 BreadTalk stores in Thailand in the future, local media reports.
The expansion, which will take place in the next 5 to 7 years, is part of a plan to increase the brand’s footprint by using Minor Group’s global network. At the moment, there are 800 BreadTalk stores in 17 countries worldwide. Outlets can be found in China, Brunei, Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and Myanmar where the brand opened its 1st store this year.
Before partnering with Minor, the Singapore-based BreadTalk operated 19 stores in Bangkok. It then teamed with Minor Group in the 4th quarter of 2014 to help it run the business and open new stores in the country.
“We opened a few new BreadTalk stores in 2015. However, in 2016, about 12 new BreadTalk bakery houses were opened. We plan to have 50 BreadTalk stores in operation at the end of this year, and 100 stores in the next 3 years. Each BreadTalk store requires an investment of about THB 7 million,” says Banyat Athiyutkul, general manager of BreadTalk Minor, to The Nation.
The company opened its 1st upcountry store last year and also opened an outlet at Blueport Hua Hin. In 2016, BreadTalk opened outlets in Pattaya and Phuket and is set to focus on areas outside of Bangkok during its expansion.
“We aim to open 100 BreadTalk bakery houses in Thailand in the next 3 years, half of them in Bangkok and the rest upcountry. We have seen great potential for BreadTalk in Thailand, thanks to the change in the lifestyle of consumers who now prefer bakery products due to the time pressure in their lives,” said Banyat.
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