McDonald's to build supply chain for south

After tasting success in the Bangalore market and after setting up an effective supply chain McDonald's is now looking at other south Indian cities this year.

McDonald's is represented by Hardcastle Restaurants in the west and south India and plans to invest Rs 300 crore to Rs 400 crore (Rs 3 to 4 billion) for expansion in the south and as well as the west, with south being an important part of the expansion plans in the next 3 years, said Amit Jatia, managing director and joint venture Partner, McDonald's India (West & South).

"We want to make our presence felt in southern India in the next three years by adopting a focussed approach. Initially we will focus on Bangalore and Hyderabad and then spread across the region. Our approach will be to open more stores in one city rather than one store in many cities," he added.

McDonald's, for its south India foray, plans to build an effective supply chain with either Bangalore or Hyderabad as a key base.

Over the last decade, McDonald's has successfully consolidated its operations in the West and is now planning to replicate a similar model for south India.

The company, celebrating its tenth anniversary of setting foot in India, opened its 94th restaurant at Brigade Road in Bangalore. The restaurant has two floors and is spread over an expanse of 3,380 square feet with a seating capacity for 134 people.

For its expansion in India, McDonald's has blended various Indian spices to prepare an extensive vegetarian menu that includes McVeggie Burger, Paneer Salsa Wrap and the Shahi Paneer McCurry Pan.

Besides eliminating beef or pork items from its menu, McDonald's in India has also specially created, for the vegetarian consumers; sandwich sauces and soft serves which are eggless and 100 per cent vegetarian, said Amit Jatia.

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