Ok, so this has been a really long time coming. That doesn’t mean that I have been researching that much more on this business segment. It only means that I was caught up with other more pressing things. It could also mean that I have just been plain lazy, but that is something I am not admitting.
Great. So the next segment in the restaurant business, would be the fast food segment. There is the Indian fast food that sells aplenty on the road sides everywhere, but we have already covered that. What I am talking about here is the fast food chains, like McDonald’s, KFC and the like. We are seeing many international chains making an entry into India. And they have succeeded too. Majorly I believe because Indians love anything “phoren”. Also because, it matches well with the young loaded crowd. And then, it is not very expensive either.
This segment sees a lot of standardization. Which is another reason for its success. When you go to a fine dining restaurant, which is a part of chain, usually, the experience will be different in different outlets. Not so with the fast food chains. The burger in a McD’s will taste the same, whichever outlet you go to, anywhere across India. It will change if you go to Europe or the States, but not so in India. Not even, within Europe, or within the USA. So when you go there, you know exactly what you will be getting. Also, since the waiters and the managers are all young college going kids, the atmosphere that is built up there is very young and happening. An interesting piece of information about the McD’s is that, hold your breath, it is the largest distributor of toys in the world. Yes, the same toys that are a part of the Happy Meal. They know that when a kid throws a tantrum, and wants to eat at the McD’s just so he can get a toy that he will hardly ever be able to play with, his parents’ will have no way to refuse him. Thats smart marketing I will say. KFC and the others dont follow that rule though, and have still succeeded. Domino’s and Pizza Hut, rely more on delivery and take away, rather than dine in. And they seem to have succeeded as well.
Now, if you were thinking of setting up a fast food outlet, either you could become a franchisee of one of these pretty well known chains, or you could start your own. As a franchisee, you might not make that much money, but with the volumes that these brands bring in, the money is nothing less than awesome. And you have lesser headaches too. If you start up on your own, remember, it has to be in a different niche altogether. Because burgers, and pizzas, and wraps and such others are already taken. There is still a wide open market, and you could experiment. But the amount of work that will go in will be tremendous. I am sure that you if all goes well, the results will be spectacular too!
doodles of a nutty mind 