SET-listed MK Restaurant Group Plc, operator of the popular sukiyaki chain, is introducing new restaurant brands this year as part of a strategy to increase sales growth in the long run.
Tantawan Thirakimen, the company's assistant marketing director, said MK will introduce two new restaurant brands this year.
One is MK Express, a food court without sukiyaki hot pot, which opened in May at Don Mueang airport.
The second brand, Bizzy Box, is a takeaway restaurant scheduled to open on Bang Na-Trat Road next month.
Bizzy Box is the company's new business model, located near office buildings to cater largely to office workers.
"We are set to grow our business via new brands and new channels this year," said Somchai Hanjitkasem, the company's chief operating officer.
The company plans to spend about 600 million baht to open 49 new restaurants this year, 18 of which will belong to MK restaurants, including one at Iconsiam and the other in Central Phuket. The remaining 31 restaurants will be Yayoi Japanese restaurants.
The company expects the number of Yayoi restaurants to increase to 201 branches this year, up from 171 thus far.
Yayoi restaurants have room for growth because of increasing numbers of health-conscious people, Mr Somchai said.
"Since we've introduced Yayoi restaurants to the Thai market, our sales have grown every year," he said. "Yayoi has becomes an alternative for health-conscious people."
Normally, Yayoi grows 10% on average annually. With aggressive expansion, the company is confident that Yayoi will grow by 17% this year, Mr Somchai said.
According to Mr Somchai, the spending power of consumers in the first five months of this year was also better than in the same period last year, so the company has already opened 10 MK restaurants in the first five months of this year.
Mr Somchai said there is still an opportunity to see more than 100 MK restaurants available in Thailand because the company is exploring new locations such as hospitals and international airports.
Moreover, MK has high brand loyalty, with some customers continuing to visit MK once a month.
Apart from its own brands, the company is also negotiating the acquisition of other food brands.
MK Restaurant Group reported total revenue of 16.45 billion baht last year, up from 15.48 billion baht in 2016.