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Our Bureau,

New Delhi, Dec. 9 Lite Bite Foods is looking to set up food courts on highways, under its high street food court brand Food Union Clix!

It has already started setting up food courts of 5,000 sq. ft offering six brands on ‘high streets’.

Now, it is headed to the highways.

The company is promoted jointly by Dabur’s Mr Amit Burman and Mr Rohit Aggarwal and Mr Tejpavan Gandhok.

“We are looking at Rs 500 crore in four years. The first year is looking okay, but it is not going as budgeted,” said Mr Burman.

“We slowed down in September-October because realty prices were clearly coming down. We didn’t want to start renting places knowing we could get them cheaper in 2-3 months,” he added.

With 40 outlets currently, Lite Bite Foods is expected to close the year with 60 outlets, and add another 100 next year. These include fine and casual dining restaurants. It had earmarked Rs 100 crore as investment over a period of three years.

It has already launched two Food Union Clix! at Lajpat Nagar and East of Kailash in New Delhi with brands such as Subway, Baker St, Rapps, Street foods of India, Big Gulp! and Pino’s. It also has an understanding with cinema chain PVR to manage food courts on some of its premises.

“With Lite Bite Foods, we are attempting to be a restaurant chain company, which I don’t think anyone in India has attempted to be,” said Mr Burman.

According to him, the bullishness which was there 3-4 years ago in modern retail is missing.

“People signed up a lot of locations aggressively at prices which were not sustainable over time. Look at malls, a lot of places are shutting down,” he said.

“For us in the food retail side, it is good, in a way. Today when I talk to the developer, and he talks about his anchor being the superstore. I tell him, not true! I am your anchor. Malls count on food courts and cinemas more than ever,” said Mr Burman.

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