ThaiBev buys KFC stores worth $340 mln in Thailand

Thai Beverage said its unit has signed a deal with Yum Restaurants to buy more than 240 existing and developing KFC stores in Thailand for about 11.3 billion thai baht.

Thai Beverage
Thai Beverage website

Thai Beverage said its unit The QSR of Asia has signed a deal with Yum Restaurants International to buy more than 240 existing and a number of developing KFC stores in Thailand for about 11.3 billion thai baht ($340 million).

An additional amount of consideration for the developing KFC stores which will be determined at closing, the company said in a statement on Tuesday after market-hours.

The deal will enable ThaiBev, which produces a wide range of branded beer and spirits in Thailand, to expand further into the food business and to capture the current lifestyle of consumers within the quick service restaurant segment, it said.

KFC brand has been the number one quick service restaurant brand in Thailand measured by brand
share and number of outlets, based on a research conducted by Nielsen Thailand.

"With QSA's restaurant management expertise, we are well positioned to accelerate KFC's further expansion in Thailand," ThaiBev's Senior Vice President – Food Business (Thailand) Nongnuch Buranasetkul said.

The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of December 2017.

Yum shares slumped 1.1 percent Tuesday in New York, after reaching a record high on August 2. Thai Beverage did not trade Wednesday as the Singapore market was closed for a holiday.

READ MORE