The Hindu Business Line : Pizza Corner plans expansion — Celebrity endorsements also on the cards

PIZZA Corner is expanding to the Western and Eastern regions of the country. By May, the fast food chain will open outlets in Mumbai and Kolkata, said Mr Parag Dutta, Chief Operating Officer, Global Franchise Architects (GFA), which is the parent company. It is also considering celebrity endorsements for Pizza Corner and Coffee World, another GFA retail brand which was recently launched in Bangalore.

Speaking to Business Line here, Mr Dutta said Pizza Corner is also tying up with an oil-retailing company (whose name he did not reveal) to set up 50 express and delivery counters at its petrol bunks in cities, towns and the highways by the end of the next financial year. This had the twin advantage of providing the brand higher visibility and not entailing high investments, he said. The company also has plans to increase the number of its express (takeaway) counters, which now stands at 11.

The pizza chain will declare profits in the current financial year, Mr Dutta said. Though he did not mention the figures, he said the turnover was growing by 18 per cent year-on-year.

Pizza Corner is also entering smaller towns in the South. These include Coimbatore, Guntur, Mangalore, Manipal, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada. So far, the company has owned all its outlets but from now on would franchise them, he said.

Pizza Corner outlets are also going in for a makeover - they will be more uniform and subtle in appearance, Mr Dutta said. Also, a new menu has been introduced for the year. While the dine-in format accounts for 60 per cent of the business, the delivery format accounts for nearly 40 per cent, he added.

GFA's other two retail brands, New York Deli and The Cream & Fudge Corporation, will be launched in India with outlets in Bangalore in May, Mr Dutta said.

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