Japan dominates list of biggest international foodservice brands

JAPANESE-OWNED convenience store brand 7-Eleven has emerged the top international foodservice chain in a recently released ranking that looks at the biggest brands outside the US and Canada.
In fact, The International Top 25 list is dominated by Japanese-owned brands, with 12 spots on the index followed by England, which lands five spots.
Prepared by market research group Euromonitor for trade group Nation’s Restaurant News, the list provides a look at the biggest players in the international foodservice industry, and presages the brands that could be coming to a street corner near you.
The ranking is based on worldwide sales from 2014.
Last year, more than 54,575 stores in 17 countries including the US, Canada, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Philippines, Denmark, earned US$20.7 billion in sales for the 7-Eleven chain, giving it a healthy distance from its rival and the second biggest chain on the list, Lawson, also a Japanese-operated convenience store.
Rounding out the top five spots is FamilyMart, also a Japanese c-store brand, British pub chain JD Wetherspoon, and Korean bakery store brand Paris Baguette.
Interestingly, Swedish furniture brand Ikea (headquartered in the Netherlands) also made the cut, for its on-site restaurant and cafeteria: rock-bottom priced Swedish meatballs and smoked salmon plates helped generate US$1.5 billion sales in 2014.
Overall, 16 of the top 25 food service chains on the list are headquartered in Asia-Pacific, with China remaining the fastest-growing market in Asia over the next five years.
“Prospects across the region remain bright, as local dining traditions and strong income growth fuel expansion [with] local players — chains and independents — leading the way, as upwardly-mobile Asian consumers seek to combine the sophisticated and the familiar,” said Euromonitor spokesperson Michael Schaefer.
While 7-Eleven may have a stranglehold as the leading international foodservice brand, the report also highlighted that Japanese-owned FamilyMart, which ranks third on the list, recorded the highest sales growth, seeing a 17% spike in 2014.
The report also highlighted that Jollibee, based out of the Philippines, is another brand to watch for after it purchased a 40% stake in the US-based fast casual chain Smashburger last month.

Here are the top 10 international foodservice brands outside the US and Canada:
1. 7-Eleven, Japan
2. Lawson, Japan
3. FamilyMart, Japan
4. JD Wetherspoon, England
5. Paris Baguette, South Korea
6. Costa Coffee, England
7. Dicos, China
8. Sukiya, Tokyo
9; Ikea, Netherlands
10. Quick, France/Belgium

For the full list visit http://nrn.com/industry-data/international-top-25. – AFP Relaxnews