Hot Star coming to Thailand
The Barbecue Plaza Co yesterday announced the local launch of Hot Star, a brand of oversized fried chicken from Taiwan, after investing Bt60 million in the venture.
Hot Star is a fast-growing franchise, popular throughout Asia and Australia. Its signature menu is “oversized 30-centimetre-long fried chicken”, and this is its first appearance in Thailand.
The first restaurant is to open early in the new year. The company expects sales of about Bt100 million in the first year, plans to expand to 35 stores over the next five years. Hot Star will announce its first launch at the Big Mountain Music Festival at The Bonanza Khao Yai in Nakhon Ratchasima province this weekend.
“Introducing new brands into our business portfolio at this time is an important move for our group,” said Chataya Supanpong, assistant managing director of The Barbecue Plaza Co.
“For this reason, to build up the Hot Star brand we made an initial investment of Bt60 million and will be given the exclusive rights under a master franchise to manage Hot Star restaurants in Thailand.”
Chanin Choopojcharoen, assistant managing director of The Barbecue Plaza Co and also acting as a Hot Star brand director, added: “We saw a chance to light up the market with the new ‘lifestyle snack’ concept. The concept we proudly promote is taken from the fact that our menu is aimed at being an energy-booster snack to suit all younger generations’ lifestyles and characters.”
Hot Star oversized fried chicken consists of a whole chicken breast, cut into a 30cm-long fillet, then blended with secret ingredients to make the meat juicy and tender. Afterwards, the chicken is thoroughly coated with a flour mixture to make it extra crunchy, then deep-fried in hot oil at 180 degrees Celsius until golden brown.
All the ingredients are imported from Taiwan to ensure Hot Star quality and standards of authentic taste and crispness. Hot Star certifies its cooks, who need to master a 400-hour cooking class at the first Hot Star store in Taiwan.
As well as its signature oversized chicken, Hot Star offers 24 items on its menu including side dishes, salads, desserts, and soft drinks.
Boonyanuch Boonbumrungsub, marketing director of The Barbecue Plaza Co, said choosing an appropriate communication channel aligned with the right marketing strategy would be the key to making the Hot Star brand a success in Thailand.
