In all, there are more than 110 restaurants under these brands, which generated 620 million lei (EUR134 million) sales in 2017, an increase of 20% on 2016. The growth expected for 2018 is 25%. These are pro forma, not consolidated figures.
“Traditionally, we open 10 to 12 restaurants a year, but will be stepping up expansion this year to 26, i.e. 23 planned for 2018 and three left over from last year and delayed due to red tape and permits not issued on time,” says Mark Hilton, the Brit who has been running the group since 2011.
The group opened 16 restaurants and closed one last year and expansion was again faster than usual. It closed only one KFC restaurant in Oradea last year, which was part of the shopping center that went out of business.
Sphera Franchise Group went public last fall and is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange. (EUR1=RON4.6292)
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)