With all the power back in the hands of McDonald’s, patrons can now expect their favourite burgers and wraps back in its menu. The global fast food major, which had shuttered several outlets following a years-long dispute with Vikram Bakshi, one of its key licensee partners, reopened 13 outlets in Delhi-NCR on Sunday. It now plans to reopen the other stores soon, “over the coming days and weeks”.
“We are thrilled to have started the reopening process and look forward to serving our customers a more authentic McDonald’s experience at these first 13 locations now open for business in Delhi,” Robert Hunghanfoo, who will now head the Connaught Plaza Restaurants Private Limited (CPRL), which runs McDonald’s operations in the North and East India, in a statement. CPRL is now wholly-owned by the local unit of the Chicago-headquartered fast food giant.
Asserting that customers visiting the 13 reopened stores will experience an enhanced service with more customised hospitality, refreshed menu boards, merchandising and packaging, Hunghanfoo said, “We will continue to work round the clock and plan to gradually reopen more restaurants in the coming days and weeks”.
The restaurants that opened on Sunday include those at the Terminal-3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport, at Connaught Place and Nehru Place.
That apart, McDonald’s may also introduce the in-coffee-house-style food and beverage chain McCafe, already present in parts of South and West India.
Meanwhile, the company is actively looking out for a partner for its North and East India business, while its business in South and West India is run by Amit Jatia’s Hardcastle Restaurants. Several contenders are known to be in the fray to partner with the fast-food chain after Bakshi’s exit. These include Kolkata-based RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group and Mumbai-based K Hospitality Group, which manages restaurants and pubs such as Copper Chimney and Irish House, said multiple sources.
Earlier this week, McDonalds acquired the full ownership of CPRL from its long-estranged business partner Bakshi. The financial details of the settlement, however, have not been disclosed so far.
Bakshi’s association with McDonald’s had begun in 1995 when, under a 25-year deal, the two partners formed the 50:50 joint venture company, CPRL, to set up outlets in the North and East India under franchisee model. His two-decade-long association with the fast-food chain turned bitter in 2013, after the latter voted against his appointment as managing director of CPRL.