KFC eyes new locations in St Elizabeth, St Ann and Kingston
MARK MYERS, the managing director of Restaurants of Jamaica (ROJ), has earmarked $1 billion for the build-out of at least 10 KFC and Pizza Hut brands combined across the island for 2020.
Over the past 12 months, ROJ has constructed five new restaurants, the latest being the Pizza Hut restaurant in May Pen, Clarendon, and also its second KFC location in the parish’s capital. The expansion brings ROJ’s network across the island to 51 as at year-end 2019.
Myers now has his eye on additional sites in St Elizabeth, St Ann, and Kingston for the New Year.
“Between the two brands, 60 will be good. I wouldn’t mind being more aggressive than that, but yes, our intention is to ramp up the pace of development for both brands. We already have some sites selected but not confirmed, so I can’t quite say where they are going to be as yet,” Myers told the Financial Gleaner.
“I can say, for instance, that with all the excitement around St Thomas we are waiting patiently on the Government to start the development of the Goodyear project. The community is screaming at us, and we hear them clearly,” he continued.
ROJ, which is the franchise holder of both KFC and Pizza Hut in the island, began its operations back in 1975, and today, claims the title for most quick service food providers in the Caribbean. Currently, the company’s Pizza Hut network across Jamaica spans 13 locations while the growing KFC network stands at 38.
Still, Myers believes that the brands have the potential for exponential growth, given the rapid pace of housing starts across the island and the demand for greater convenience from local companies.
“May Pen has always been a very valued location for us. Over the years, the town has grown in housing starts from the improved access to and from Kingston with the highway,” Myers said.
“As such, we recognised the fact that we needed a second location for KFC to serve our customers in the area at the standards that we like. Once we found the location, we determined that it could accommodate a Pizza Hut,” the managing director continued.
Both KFC locations in May Pen span 1.5 kilometres in distance. The new location on Manchester Avenue in May Pen is specifically designed to cater to drive-through customers.
“What we looked at when we were evaluating the potential locations was the difference in trade zone and buying zone, and what we were able to determine is that where we are currently located, which is right in the heart of May Pen, was made more convenient to vehicular traffic over the years to accommodate shopping activities,” he said.
“Our drive-through set-up wasn’t ideal, which created some service issues. So when we were looking, we looked for a location that could accommodate drivethrough easy access and also had the space to deliver on the service. The new restaurant has a double drivethrough. Of course, it’s a learning curve, but the idea is to better service our drive-through customers.”