McDonald’s will spend Rs 300 crore on expansion

Will triple number of outlets in the country by 2010

NEW DELHI: US fast-food giant McDonald’s said  on Monday it will spend Rs 300
crore ($75 million) in India over the next three years towards expansion even as it opened its first express restaurant at the domestic airport in Delhi.

“We plan to triple the number of outlets in India by the end of 2010 from 122 at present,” Vikram Bakshi, joint venture partner and managing director, McDonald’s India, said.

“We have also tied up with two  petroleum marketing companies to open our outlets. Very soon you will see our restaurants at petrol pumps,” Bakshi said, adding that the express outlets, too, will be expanded to other cities.

The McDonald’s official said the express outlets would be based on the concept of “demand-based pricing strategy” where the number of products available will be not only limited but also priced 10-15% higher.

“McDonald’s is all about convenience and quality. Opening our express restaurant at the domestic airport is a significant milestone in our quest towards meeting all our customer’s needs and expectations,” he said.

The fast-food giant had opened its first restaurant in India at Vasant Vihar in south Delhi on October 13, 1996. It now has 72 restaurants in the northern and eastern regions, and 50 in southern and western regions.

To cater to the Indian palette, it has some specific products for the country, such as McAloo Tikki, McVeggie and Pizza McPuff, which are also available in the Gulf countries that have a significant population of the Indian diaspora.