Buffalo Wild Wings entering India with Mirchi Group

Buffalo Wild Wings®, Inc. will now reach the sports hungry fans in India with the successful signing of a 15-location exclusive development agreement with Mirchi Group for the entire South India region. The franchisee - Mirchi Group - has committed to open the first Indian Buffalo Wild Wings in Hyderabad and Bengaluru within the next 12 months. After the launch of the flagship location, the franchisee will open multiple BWW restaurants across South India within the next 7 years.  “We are very excited to be working with Mirchi Group and bringing the Buffalo Wild Wings experience to India. We look forward to becoming a part of this dynamic Indian community,” said Tim Murphy, Vice President of International for Buffalo Wild Wings.  Mr.Sam Reddy - CEO of Mirchi Group said that “we do strongly believe in the BWW mantra of Wings, Beer and Sports. The Buffalo Wild Wings franchise will be amazingly successful in India due to its spicy and bold flavor profile in comparison with other Western brands. Buffalo, New York – styled spicy chicken wings will perfectly match our Indian palate. 

Additionally, Indians are Cricket fanatics along with global awareness and rapidly increasing fan following of other international sports - Soccer, NBA, Tennis, Formula One, etc.  It was an elaborate and very stressful 10-11 month process to secure the exclusive Franchise Development Agreement with Buffalo Wild Wings. We are very excited and grateful for this opportunity to be their first franchisee partner in India.”  Mr.Kedar Selagamsetty - Partner of Mirchi Group says “we have done extensive research in India about the viability of Buffalo Wild Wings and are very confident of the brand success hence we have aggressively committed to opening 15 restaurant locations across South India. 

We are now looking to open 12,000+ SF locations of BWW in prime free-standing space of Hyderabad and Bengaluru.”  Buffalo Wild Wings is a very popular American restaurant chain known for its draft beer and exciting sports viewing atmosphere. Their namesake Buffalo, NY-style chicken wings are served with a choice of multiple signature sauces and seasonings, which pair nicely with their extensive array of draft and bottle beer options. Buffalo Wild Wings is the recipient of hundreds of "Best Wings" and "Best Sports Bar" awards from across the country. Founded in 1982 by two friends in Ohio, USA, Buffalo Wild Wings has grown into a global restaurant brand with over 1,100 locations in the United State, Canada, Mexico and the Philippines.  Aside from its winning combination of chicken wings hand-spun in signature sauces and seasonings, the restaurant also offers burgers, sandwiches, salads, wraps, and more. Its restaurant design provides the ultimate sports viewing experience, while bringing the look and feel of a stadium into the restaurant. Gaming will also be in an integral piece of the puzzle, as Buffalo Wild Wings aims to connect their guests in multiple ways while visiting the restaurant.

French menswear company Celio to increase local sourcing

French menswear company Celio International is planning to take the franchise route and increase local sourcing in the country.

With 41 stores and 130 shop-in-shops, Celio had entered the country six years ago through a joint venture with Future Lifestyle Fashion. Since then it has steadily increased its stake from 50 per cent earlier to 97 per cent.

Rajiv Nair, CEO, Celio Future Fashion, said: “We need a franchise model to penetrate smaller cities and high streets as there are plans to open 8-10 stores every year. As a company we become less capital-intensive with franchises who can make the business run profitably.’’

Celio is the largest selling menswear brand in France with a 18 per cent share. Almost two years ago, the owner of Celio International, Marc Grosman, had visited India to apply for higher FDI, which is allowed for single brand retail. Since then the French company has been steadily increasing stake and hence bringing in capital to build the business in India.

“There has been capital infusion from Celio International as we have increased our stake to 97 per cent while the balance of 3 per cent is still held by Future Lifestyle Fashion,’’ added Nair.

Celio is now gearing up for competition as international brands have been steadily entering the market with companies like Zara, Gas, Gap and now H&M making their way to India. “Today, we have 18 per cent growth among our like-to-like stores but have to wait for another year before we can make money in India,’’ said Nair.

E-commerce is also a channel being explored by the retail company as almost 9 per cent of sales currently come from this channel.

“We still cannot do e-commerce directly but once we get FDI complaint we may look at a payment gateway from our company site,’’ said Nair.

Also local sourcing is expected to increase from 60 to75 per cent as certain products cannot typically get made in India. Celio continues to outsource from places such as Tirupur, Bengaluru and Ludhiana.

As Nair adds, “While we have to follow the norms for local sourcing, there will continue to be imported items like jackets which are best made abroad.’’

Subway opened an all-women operated outlet in Mumbai

Quick service restaurant chain Subway on 6 March 2015 opened an all-women operated outlet at Andheri, Mumbai to mark the International Women's day on 8 March.

With the new outlet opening in suburban Andheri, the Connecticut-based company's store count has now reached 500 in India.

Subway entered India in 2001. It operates in 70 cities across the country and has plans to take its total number of stores to 1000 by 2018. It is targeting tier II, tier III cities to fuel its growth plans.

Subway is an American fast food restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches (subs) and salads. It is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world, with 43035 restaurants in 108 countries and territories.

It is the largest single-brand restaurant chain and the largest restaurant operator globally.