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Tag: Ippudo

  • Ippudo Hong Kong teams with Zucca for celebration

    Ippudo Hong Kong teams with Zucca for celebration

    Proving that fashion is a matter of taste, Japanese fashion brand Zucca has launched a collaboration with Ippudo Hong Kong to celebrate the Japanese ramen restaurant’s sixth anniversary.

    Ippudo this month introduces new limited-time-only specials at its five Hong Kong outlets including “Cool” Uni Ramen, Zucca Roll and Nagoya Torikai Chicken Wings Karaage.

    During the three-month celebration, Ippudo Hong Kong staff members will wear customised Zucca-branded uniforms (tees and aprons). Furthermore, Zucca has designed a special branded tote bag plus a ramen bowl for the Zucca x Ippudo celebration menu.

    In a six-phase celebration, Ippudo fans will be offered collectibles and discounts.

    Phases one and two (this month): An Ippudo Hong Kong Facebook video launches the celebrations, and Ippudo staff members are modelling their Japanese-style uniform, with special Facebook activities.

    Phase three (this month and next): Illustrator Tony Electric introduces three inventions and customers vote for their favourite. The winning invention will be built and displayed at Ippudo.

    Phase four (this month and next): Ippudo and Zucca launch an online mini-game which customers can play after scanning a QR code on the menu. All participants are offered free Zucca membership, plus two winners will each receive a HK$100 (US$12) electronic shopping coupon. Each day, 10 lucky entrants will each win a soft-boiled egg or Zucca roll at Ippudo.

    Phase five (September/October): Zucca members will be offered a 10 per cent discount on purchases, and also take their receipt to Ippudo to a similar discount there.

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  • Ippudo restaurant owner applies for listing

    Ippudo restaurant owner applies for listing

    Ramen restaurant chain Ippudo’s owner is expected to list shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as early as March.

    The total market value of the initial offering is projected to be around 30 billion yen (US$259 million).

    Chikaranomoto Holdings has about 60 Ippudo restaurants as well as other brands outside of Japan. It filed an initial listing application in December, which means approval could come next month. The listing is expected to let the group accelerate expansion in domestic and overseas markets.

    Company founder and chairman Shigemi Kawahara opened his first ramen shop in 1985 in Fukuoka Prefecture in southwestern Japan. The company posted group sales of 20.8 billion yen for the year through to March 2016, up 17 per cent from the previous year.

    Ippudo began expanding into foreign markets in 2008, establishing itself first in New York. The chain now has shops in China, France and other countries, and will open its first outlet in Myanmar soon.

    Inspired by New York’s cocktail bars, Chikaranomoto Holdings opened standing-style ramen shops in Tokyo and nearby areas last year, and it plans to open more in Kyushu soon.

    Ippudo also has five branches in the Philippines.

  • Taiwan’s SheenHo finds partner for Myanmar

    Taiwan’s SheenHo finds partner for Myanmar

    Taiwanese restaurant chain SheenHo has awarded a master franchise to Myanmar company Creation Strength to open outlets in the frontier market.

    About K1.3 billion (US$995,000) will be invested in opening up to 20 branches over five years, starting in Yangon.

    Chefs from Myanmar will be flown to Taiwan to learn how to prepare the restaurant’s cuisine.
    Meanwhile, Singapore Myanmar Investco (SMI) has partnered with Japanese ramen chain Ippudo to open a branch in Myanmar. SMI has also signed an agreement with Singapore’s Crystal Jade Group to open Chinese restaurants in Myanmar.

  • Panda Express heading for Japan

    Panda Express heading for Japan

    US Chinese fast-food chain Panda Express, a staple of mall food courts in California, is about to launch in Japan.

    It will be in the hands of I&P Runway Japan, a joint entity set up last year between Panda Express owner Panda Restaurant Group and Chikara no Moto, the restaurant management group behind the tonkotsu ramen chain Ippudo. Originally formed to help Ippudo gain a foothold in the US, the JV is now aiming to open the first Japanese Panda Express before the end of the year.

    Other American fast-food chains such as KFC, Krispy Kreme and McDonald’s have had success in Japan, tweaking their menus to suit local tastes.

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  • SMI helping launch Ippudo in Myanmar

    SMI helping launch Ippudo in Myanmar

    Singapore Myanmar Investco (SMI) will launch Japanese ramen restaurant chain Ippudo in Myanmar early next year.

    Brand owner Chikaranomoto Holdings will provide training programs for SMI to set up and run the Myanmar restaurants.

    ippudo outside

    “We see abundant growth opportunities within the F&B retail market in Myanmar, and the time is ripe for us to introduce the Ippudo brand and cuisine to the growing middle class,” says SMI president/CEO Mark Bedingham.

    SMI, which is involved in consumer products and services in Myanmar, is looking to invest in retail and F&B over the next three years. It has also signed a franchise agreement with restaurant group Crystal Jade and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf.

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  • Growth plan for Starbucks Vietnam and Cambodia

    Growth plan for Starbucks Vietnam and Cambodia

    Dairy Farm Group says it plans to expand its Starbucks Hong Kong and Vietnam networks.

    Last year, Dairy Farm opened six new Starbucks Vietnam cafes and its first in Cambodia – in the capital city Phnom Penh last December.

    “This new market offers significant opportunities as there is no dominant market player,” said CEO Graham Allan. “The group is currently working to fully understand local tastes and preferences.”

    In Vietnam, the company says it will continue – for now – to focus expansion in the main cities of Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi.

    Starbucks operations in Vietnam, Cambodia and Hong Kong – where the network is also set to be expanded this year – is operated by Dairy Farm’s restaurant subsidiary Maxim’s.

    “Maxim’s delivered another year of solid results,” Allan said in the company’s annual operational review.

    “Expansion of its Chinese casual dining restaurants and Japanese restaurants continue in Mainland China.”

    Maxim’s opened 44 net new outlets during the year, including six in Mainland China and the new Starbucks outlets.

    Dairy Farm’s restaurants division reported US$1.9 billion in total sales, representing an increase of 8 per cent year-on-year, while the profit contribution increased by 9 per cent as the business delivered another year of record earnings.

    “Looking ahead, the macro economy and local business environments are expected to be challenging in 2016, with continued currency volatility and fragile consumer confidence,” said Allan.

    “The group sees exciting prospects, however, with a number of establishments opening at the Shanghai Disney Resort in June 2016, including the staff canteen, The Cheesecake Factory and Japanese chain concepts Ippudo and Dondonya.”

    He said besides expanding in Vietnam and Cambodia, Maxim’s will continue to explore further opportunities for acquisitions and/or franchising throughout Asia.

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