Gourmet Master Co (美食達人), the operator of cafe and bakery chain 85°C (85度C), plans to open 10 more outlets in California this year and expects US sales to account for up to 15 percent of the company’s revenue by the end of the year.
Gourmet Master, which currently has nine outlets in the US, saw sales contribution from North America break the 10 percent mark for the first time last month, when it posted NT$1.29 billion (US$42.5 million) in consolidated revenue.
“Based on experience, the sales performance of a US outlet could increase six times over that of an outlet in Taiwan or China,” Gourmet Master CEO James Hsieh (謝健南) told an investors’ conference yesterday.
Encouraged by its US sales performance, the company is accelerating the pace of its expansion.
Hsieh said the company is set to increase the total number of outlets in the US to between 20 and 25 by the end of the year, with Los Angeles and San Francisco serving as the two major areas of expansion.
Longer term, the company may launch more outlets in other Californian cities, such as San Diego, to boost its market share to the top position in the region, Hsieh added.
Gourtmet Master is also hiring a consulting company to help the company evaluate other possible locations in the US after the chain has fully expanded in California, Hsieh said.
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