NIGERIA – Food Concepts, a leading Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) operator in West Africa has opened its 200th store in the region.
Established in 2001, the fast-food chain operates stores across Nigeria and Ghana, trading under the Chicken Republic, PieXpress and Chop Box brands.
The opening of the new store is a significant milestone for the restaurant owner who operates alongside players such as Eat n Go, in the highly competitive market.
The master franchisee for Domino’s Pizza, Cold Stone Creamery, and Pinkberry Gourmet Frozen Yoghurt, in the same fashion as Food Concepts, also celebrated the attaining of 150 stores in Nigeria.
The rise of branch counts in the country, brought Eat’N’Go’s store number in Africa to 156, after its acquisition of the Kenyan operations, taking the fast-food chain operator closer to its targeted 180 stores by end of 2021 across Africa.
For Food Concepts, the opening of the new outlet aligns with its growth strategy as it recently welcomed a new partner in the business.
Development Partners International (DPI), the main investor of the company sold 31% stake of the fast-food chain to African Capital Alliance (ACA), a leading pan-African alternative investment firm.
Following the deal, ACA and DPI will work together to support Food Concepts on its next phase of growth and help drive the business’ regional expansion strategy.
Led by a best-in-class and experienced management team, and with support from DPI, Food Concepts has grown rapidly from 58 stores in 2015, disrupting the Nigerian QSR sector with an affordable value proposition and demonstrating exceptional financial and operational performance across economic cycles.
The business also operates an online delivery business, growing at over 140% year on year and serves around 15 million customers per year, in addition to employing over 4,000 people.
Women comprise 51% of the workforce and 57% of the management team. The business was cited at the 2021 G7 summit as a leading success story in the development of women leaders.
Food Concepts demonstrates the tremendous growth the Nigerian mass market can offer for companies that are able to capture the opportunity, as its sales have grown at over 40% every year since 2015.
ACA with US$1.2 billion Assets Under Management, will leverage its experience in the FMCG sector and understanding of the local consumers’ preferences, to deliver further value to Food Concepts.
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