Minor Food Group Plc, the operator of The Pizza Company brand, is to resume its expansion by spending 150 million baht on 30-50 new branches next year.
Patt Pongwittayapipat, general manager of The Pizza Company, said all the new branches would be opened under the concept of a "small box" outlet, covering 60-80 square metres.
The first of the company's small-box restaurants will be opened in January in community malls or commercial buildings. Some branches will open in second-tier cities with 150,000 households residing in the area.
"The Pizza Company was launched in the country 20 years ago, playing a part in boosting the popularity of the pizza-eating culture in the Thai market both in Bangkok and upcountry areas," Mr Patt said. "We started opening The Pizza Company in second-tier districts in Chiang Mai, Ubon Ratchathani and Udon Thani in 2018 to test the market. It received very positive feedback, and now the situation regarding the pandemic is improving we will put greater focus on opening small-box stores next year."
According to Mr Patt, the company expects to open 100 small-box stores over the next five years within retail complexes, petrol stations, and community and office buildings. It aims to cover 100% of locations in second-tier districts, which have about 600 locations across the country.
Apart from these new stores, the company will also create new products such as snacks to respond to demand from its Grab & Go channel.
Snack products contribute 15-20% of sales at The Pizza Company, which will increase when 5-6 new snacks are launched at its restaurants next year.
There are currently 425 The Pizza Company stores across Thailand.
The firm will open three more The Pizza Company restaurants this year, bringing the total to 428 stores, covering all strategic locations in 75 provinces.
Before the pandemic, 10-15 The Pizza Company outlets were being opened each year. Each requires an investment of 6-10 million baht, depending on size.
With consumer traffic returning to its restaurants over the last nine months, Mr Patt expects overall revenue of The Pizza Company to hit 6.2 billion baht in 2022, the same level as 2019 and a 1-2% increase from 2021.
The firm expects revenue to increase by 20% next year.