McDonald's franchisee Westlife turns profitable

McDonald's released an ad of a widow and her son in which the only thing in common between the kid and his father was their favourite burger. After facing severe backlash Mcdonald's decided to pull the ad

Westlife Development, the owners of the master franchisee of McDonald's restaurants in the Western and Southern markets, returned to the black with a net profit Rs 7.75 crore for the quarter to December against a net loss of Rs 1.71 crore a year ago.

Total revenue for the period rose to Rs 305.19 crore from Rs 241.75 crore, registering a growth of 26.2 per cent.

"The company has delivered record numbers in the quarter with double-digit comparable sales growth of 20.7 per cent, the highest in the QSR (quick service restaurant) industry," vice-chairman Amit Jatia said in a statement today.

He further said their new innovative fusion products under 'Flavours Without Borders' have delivered good results and aided in increasing footfalls significantly.

During the quarter, the company launched 12 new products under 'Flavours without Borders' and five more products specifically for Bengaluru.

"We've also been able to optimise our crew and utility costs, resulting in a healthy operating leverage to the profit and loss. Further, our brand extensions are contributing significantly to the business," Jatia said.

Jatia said McDelivery has been an outperformer this quarter and has been a significant growth driver, while McCafé has once again beaten its best and has clocked the highest ever average sales on a per day basis, he said.

"Experience of the Future continues to be our focus area. With five new stores in Bengaluru, we now have 10 such stores in 12 months. These modern restaurants have significantly elevated our customer experience," he added.

The company managed significant savings on the back of ROP 2.0, its new restaurant operating platform, on which it opened 25 stores in the last 12 months. As a result of this platform, its restaurants are able to break even earlier and improve profitability, he said.

"The company is on track with its expansion plans as during the quarter it opened nine restaurants and five new McCafés, taking the count to 271 and 141, respectively. Royalty payment continues to be at 4 per cent for FY19 as well," Jatia added.