Duck specialist invests in Chef Man restaurants
Listed conglomerate BTS Group Holdings (BTS) has announced that duck-meat producer Bangkok Ranch (BR) will become a 42.5-per-cent shareholder in the Chef Man restaurant business, investing up to Bt400 million.
The two firms’ new joint venture will own and operate five restaurant chains with 11 branches and plans to open more outlets and invest in a central “kitchen factory”.
Chef Man, named for celebrated Chinese chef Man Wai Yin and first introduced in Thailand in 2011, is well known for its dim sum, Peking duck, mooncakes and other offerings.
BTS chief executive Kavin Kanjanapas said the joint venture would benefit from both BTS’ experience in retail and restaurants and BR’s expertise in food manufacturing.
He said Man Wai Yin would continue developing his award-winning menus for diners in Thailand and elsewhere.
“We believe that the synergy among all three parties will enable the company to grow aggressively and add many branches and outlets to increase its revenues,” Kavin said.
While the Chef Man restaurant chain will be held through Man Food Holdings, the new joint venture will own and operate five chains, ranging from premium fine-dining restaurants to quick-service outlets, all under the Chef Man brand. Currently there are 11 branches within the five chains.
BR chief executive Joseph Suchaovanich said his firm’s investment in Chef Man reflects its strategy of engaging more “downstream” consumers. BR’s emphasis is on developing a fully integrated food business extending both upstream to downstream, he said.
