From launch to IPO, Burger King has reached far ahead of its peers in 8 years. What makes India such a delectable market and what has been the growth trajectory like for Burger King?

India is one of the biggest consumer markets. Our population is our greatest asset especially marked by the millennial segment which constitutes almost 65 percent of the base. Bolstered by better education opportunities and higher incomes, these consumers are able and willing to spend on food, and lifestyle experiences; and are very discerning in their choices. This growing demographic is an exact match to our user group and it was a no-brainer to enter the Indian QSR market. Some of the highlights of Burger King's journey are below:

2015 - Commenced operations of the first restaurant at Select Citywalk Mall, Saket, New Delhi

2018 - The first television commercial of the company aired on television along with commencing operations at the 100th restaurant at Jalandhar LPU, Punjab

2019 - Expansion to the east zone by the opening of a store in Bhubaneshwar

2020 - Commenced operations of the 200th restaurant at Chakala metro station, Mumbai, and launched the first restaurant in Kolkata

2021 – Relaunched our flagship Whopper in India and launched a stunner menu with new products in different food formats at Rs.50

In an interaction with Nusra, Rajeev Varman, CEO, Burger King India spills the beans on the idea behind launching IPO amidst the pandemic, foodservice trends, future plans, and a lot more.

Edited Excerpts:-

You marked the IPO in the midst of the pandemic when the restaurant business was badly hit? What were your fears and yet how did you go ahead with it?

The pandemic was unprecedented and quite an unknown with respect to the shift in consumer behavior. With stores shutting down and a nationwide lockdown, our first priority was to assure the consumers that we as a brand understand their situation. We were one of the first brands to come up with 'Don’t Come to Burger King' 1 week prior to the lockdown announcement. During the pandemic, our communication showcased our initiatives of sanitization, social distancing, safe deliveries, zero contact experience, and crew and guest safety measures. We also preponed the launch of our brand app which gave yet another channel for consumers to order from BK.

Our IPO, though during the pandemic, is reflective of our consumer's and investors' trust in our brand and we are thankful to them for such a blockbuster response to the same.

We have seen that delivery has emerged as an important element of the foodservice industry in the last two years. How will it pan out in the next year and how is Burger King en-capturing the delivery market?

During the pandemic, the only way possible to enjoy Burger King food was via deliveries at home. The pandemic did change consumer behavior to a large extent where home deliveries became a norm rather than an exception. We too have responded to this new reality with best-in-class deliveries via our BK app which we launched during the pandemic. We continue to maintain a strong relationship with our food aggregator partners. In the coming year, we do see dine-in traffic coming back with a vengeance with the ease of restrictions and everything opening up.

It is said that QSR's business is driven by innovation and technological advancement. What are the biggest innovations that Burger King is doing or has done recently at Burger King that gives the brand an edge over its peers?

Burger King entered India with one of the biggest taste tests ever done. Our menu was built ground up to ensure that it is Veg first, suited to the Indian Taste buds, and value for money. We continue plugging gaps in our portfolio with the same principles that we started with.  We continue to invest in consumer research to ensure all new innovations are vetted by consumers and liked by them before they hit our restaurants.

The brand has seen a decline in sales growth. When do you see a turnaround in it?

We have already reached our pre-Covid sales numbers. With the re-launch of Whopper and the launch of the Rs 50 Stunner Menu, we have crafted a unique identity with our consumers as a brand that stands for great value for money and high-quality food.

What are your expansion plans for the new financial year?

The Indian urban present a growing pie with more personal disposable income and eating out patterns. With the untapped potential coupled with our cluster strategy approach, urban India presents a great opportunity for growth in the future. Burger King India plans to continue with its 'cluster approach' of expansion where it has six main clusters across the country—around Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Punjab, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. This penetration strategy helps provide greater convenience and accessibility, along with a scalable and better-managed supply chain. Our store expansion plans include adding 70 new stores in the coming financial year and onwards to 700 by December 2026.

What according to you will be the topmost trend going forward that will change the way people have been eating out?

Post-pandemic, food safety, and sanitization have become priorities for our consumers. There is a significant shift in out-of-home consumption from an unorganized to an organized sector. Consumers are looking for a trusted brand with safety in food preparation. At Burger King India, we have already initiated our 'Trust In Taste' program globally. All food served in every restaurant of Burger King India is free from synthetic colors. We do not add any artificial flavors to our food. We have also started to work on further enhancing food nutrition along with checks on sugar and salt intake basis the dietary guidelines for the long term. Besides food safety, we also see consumers demanding more value for their money across categories and products. Our pricing strategy since inception has mirrored this consumer need.

Is Burger King revisiting its menu towards vegan, local supply chain, and indigenous product lines in India?

We, at Burger King, are constantly evaluating our menus by listening to consumers and understanding their taste requirements. Our brand line is 'Your Way' and if that includes new contemporary products, rest assured Burger King will launch it on its menus. Our supply chains from day one have been 100 percent local and indigenous. All our ingredients are made in India to be consumed by Indians.

Today when great resignation is the big buzz, how are you training and motivating your front-end staff to keep going?

We consider Burger King India as an institution where our crew not only earns a livelihood but also life skills. We have an entire training and development department that ensures our front-end staff is regularly up-skilled basis their job profiles. We also run a lot of programs for our women crew under the aegis of 'Queens at BK', under which we mentor them to fast track their careers. Cross-functional training and experience is a way of life at BK which ensures our staff is more employable within as well as outside Burger King.