SINGAPORE: ST Group Food Industries, an established Food and Beverage (F&B) group headquartered in Australia, announced that it will open 10 new outlets, expanding F&B operations across the Group’s key geographical markets of Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom by September 2020.

Five of these outlets will be owned and operated by the Group while the other five will be owned and operated by sub-franchisees or sub-licensees.

Mr. Saw Tatt Ghee, Executive Chairman and CEO of the Company, said, “The majority of outlets in our network have recommenced business operations as lockdown measures in our key geographical markets are being eased gradually. Amid the adversity, we have identified several opportunities to expand our F&B operations. For these new outlets, we have also been able to secure favourable lease terms with the various landlords by leveraging on the scale of our business operations.”

In Australia, the Group has confirmed the opening of three outlets, with one outlet each under the KURIMU, PappaRich and Go Noodle House brands. The Go Noodle House outlet will be owned and operated by the Group. This will be the first Go Noodle House outlet to be operated by the Group as a sub-franchisee, as part of its portfolio diversification strategy.

Go Noodle House is a beloved Malaysian restaurant chain founded in 2014, which has since grown across Southeast Asia.

“Go Noodle House has resonated well with consumers since its introduction into the Australian market in 2018. We have witnessed the growth of Go Noodle House and are pleased to add this new outlet to our network, which provides additional diversity to our portfolio,” Mr. Saw added.

In New Zealand, the lockdown was lifted on 8 June 2020 and activities in the country has largely returned to normal. For this key geographical market, the opening of four Gong Cha outlets and one IPPUDO outlet has been planned. One of the Gong Cha outlets and the IPPUDO outlet will be owned and operated by the Group.

Since the opening of its first Gong Cha outlet in the UK in 2019, the Group has experienced strong sales for the Gong Cha brand of beverages. Riding on the growing demand, another two outlets will be opened in the UK. These two outlets will be owned and operated by the Group.

As part of the Group’s business review and cost rationalisation strategy, the Group is in the process of closing one Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tart outlet in Australia and two NeNe Chicken outlets in Malaysia.

As at 24 June 2020, the Group has a network of 118 outlets comprising 46 Group-owned outlets and 72 outlets owned by its sub-franchisees and sub-licensees. Of the outlets in its network, 109 outlets have re-opened, representing approximately 92.4% of the Group’s total network

Founded in 2011, ST Group holds the exclusive franchise and licence rights to six internationally popular F&B brands, namely, “PappaRich”, “NeNe Chicken”, “Gong Cha”, “Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tart”, “IPPUDO” and “iDarts”, in various territories. It has also developed two of its own brand concepts, “PAFU” and “KURIMU”. ST Group also operates one sub-franchised F&B outlet under the Go Noodle House brand.