Belayab signs new franchise deal
As Kentucky-based Yum! teams up with Belayab Foods to bring Pizza Hut in the capital, Kaldis – Ethiopia’s premier café is set to open KFC.
Ethiopia’s most successful franchised café signed a deal with Yum! this week, according to Elias Ketema, the co-owner of Kaldis and will see Ethiopia join numerous African nations with the brand name chicken restaurants.
This is a departure for Elias who is known to operate a number of Italian restaurants in Ethiopia, known to cater to the diplomatic core and the growing middle class communities as he transitions to the fast food market.
The American multinational company has been eyeing the Ethiopian market since 2015. Its popularity in North America and Europe continues to falter in the midst of a population that has become health conscious.
For Yum! the Ethiopian market is an ideal market, with a young population and an economy that is continuously growing. Its first franchise in the CMC area continues to see a queue of people ready to purchase its famous signature greasy pizza. The second store opened a inside the Morning Star building in Bole with more to come within the year.
“We mark the arrival of Pizza Hut in Ethiopia, an iconic American brand, which will offer Ethiopian families, American families, and Addis Ababa’s cosmopolitan population the opportunity to enjoy one of America’s most popular foods made by one of the most widely-recognized restaurants in the world”, the United States ambassador to Ethiopia, Michale A. Raynor said at the opening of the eatery on Tuesday. “And the growing presence of Pizza Hut and other brand-name companies in Ethiopia signals to other U.S. and international investor that Ethiopia offer compelling business opportunities”.
In related news, Belayab Foods signed an agreement with Arizona based company known as Cold stone Kahala Group – a franchisor of quick-service restaurants.
