INDIA – Westlife Development, the owner and operator of McDonald’s restaurants in the west and south of India, is on a market expansion drive, revealing plans to add around 200 additional restaurants in its network within the next five years.  

The company said it is planning to invest around Rs 800-1,000 crore in the opening of new stores and also in revamping existing stores with enhanced digital capabilities such as self-ordering kiosks and table services. 
 
Westlife Development said the investment will strengthen its leadership position in the burger, chicken and beverage segments further and aid the growth of the organized eating out market.  

While unveiling its growth plans for the next few years, Westlife Development Vice-Chairman Amit Jatia  said noted that about 6000 to 8000 jobs would be created by the various investment initiatives that the company plans to embark on.  

As of June 30, 2021, Westlife Development, through its subsidiary Hardcastle Restaurants Pvt. Ltd. (HRPL) operates 305 McDonald’s restaurants across 42 cities in the West and South region. 
 
According to Jatia, the next phase of growth for Westlife Development will see the company adopt more cutting-edge technology and data analytical tools as it endeavours to provide a personalised, feature-rich experience to consumers. 
 
“The company is also committed to integrating more ESG practices into its business model to enhance the overall competitiveness of the domestic QSR industry,” he said. 

Earlier, McDonald’s USA announced that it will test the plant-based McPlant burger created as part of its partnership with Beyond Meat in eight U.S. restaurants next month.  

 The company said the limited test is supposed to help the chain understand the impact of introducing a plant-based burger on its operations.   

Mcdonalds also recently moved its China operations to a new eight-story, sustainability-focused headquarters in Shanghai. 

The new office complex will host the Hamburger University that McDonald’s expects to use to train and develop more than 75,000 restaurant workers in China. 

The modern office complex also hosts an innovation center to allow chefs to create new menu items for the Chinese market.   

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