Restaurant chain operator TTFB Co Ltd (瓦城泰統集團) yesterday said it plans to launch a global research and development (R&D) center in Taiwan and begin trial runs of its two centers in Los Angeles during the fourth quarter of this year, as it seeks to enter the US market.
The R&D center, which would be in Taoyuan’s Jhongli District (中壢), aims to integrate five major functions — menu development, culinary training, logistics, food safety and resource management — as the company strives to comprehensively bolster its operational capabilities and accelerate global expansion efforts, TTFB said in a statement after its annual general meeting.
TTFB said its planned presence in the US is part of its efforts to maintain strong operating performance in the second half of the year while speeding up its global deployment plans.
Photo courtesy of TTFB Co Ltd
TTFB operates several Thai restaurant chains, including Thai Town Cuisine (瓦城泰式料理), Very Thai Restaurant (非常泰), 1010 Hunan Cuisine (1010湘), Bheart Noodles (大心新泰式麵食) and Shann Rice Bar (時時香), as well as Southeast Asian cuisine brand Yabi Kitchen, pad thai restaurant BoBo, American store The Diner (樂子) and Taiwanese cuisine restaurant Shann Shann (香香).
As of the end of April, the company said it was running 150 stores in Taiwan, adding that it aims to have 500 locations worldwide by 2030.
This year, TTFB continued to expand its market presence with its multi-brand strategy, as it hopes to achieve double-digit growth through a number of store openings, the company said.
As a result, consolidated revenue for the first five months of the year rose 3.34 percent year-on-year to NT$2.58 billion (US$87.1 million), the highest January-to-May figure in the company’s history, TTFB said.
Net profit in the first quarter increased 11.73 percent year-on-year to NT$100.35 million, with earnings per share of NT$2.56, company data showed.
Shareholders yesterday approved plans to distribute NT$8 in cash dividends per share and 0.1 percent in stock dividends based on last year’s earnings per share of NT$9.01.
The cash dividends represent a payout ratio of 88.79 percent, the company said.
TTFB posted a net profit of NT$352.63 million last year, down 19.87 percent year-on-year due to elevated price pressures, while revenue grew 6.15 percent from a year earlier to NT$6.08 billion, its regulatory filing showed.
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