PETALING JAYA, Jan 10 — Just over a year under a new management, A&W Malaysia Sdn Bhd is set to expand its operations in 2020 by allocating RM22 million for capital expenditure and opening 20 more outlets.
It will do so following a development agreement with Singapore-based franchise holder A Great American Brand International Pte Ltd, with the main goal of expanding its outlets to 124 locations by 2024.
A&W chief executive officer George Ang said when his organisation Inter Mark Resources Sdn Bhd took over the franchise from its previous owner KUB Malaysia Berhad in July 2018, there were 34 outlets in the country.
“At present, we now have 49 outlets. A&W’s revenue when we took over was RM70 million, and touched RM90 million for 2019. We expect it to reach RM120 million by the end of the year,” he said following the agreement signing at the iconic PJS 52 drive-through outlet.
A&W Restaurants Inc global chief executive officer Kevin Bazner, who flew in from the United States yesterday to attend the signing, said this is a positive development for the franchise in Malaysia.
“Having lived here from 1988 to 1995, to see Malaysia develop into a powerhouse within Asean has been nothing short of amazing. It was not perfect, but then again nothing is, so Malaysia becoming a leading player in the region is very heartening.
“We also intend to use Malaysia as a platform to expand into Southeast Asia, so it is mostly a question of how to use the extended development here and leverage that in other markets. Effectively we want to use the country as a regional hub,” he said.
The agreement signing was also witnessed by the US Embassy’s deputy chief of mission Dean Thompson, who hailed the cultural impact A&W has had in Malaysia.
“It has a powerful representation in the US, and seeing it elsewhere in the world almost feels like home in a way like no other. It is a great feeling of pride to know that brands appreciated by Americans are also appreciated by Malaysians,” he said.
Thompson added A&W Restaurants, Inc’s plans on turning Malaysia into its regional hub is indicative of the increased interest by American companies in investing here, which he said has been a constant these past few years.
“The American Chamber of Commerce has been really pushing the idea of cooperation between Malaysian and US companies. American investment according to our latest available statistics has also been leading the way in terms of overall foreign investment in the country,” he said.
Ang, the man behind Inter Mark Resources Sdn Bhd, acquired A&W Malaysia from KUB Malaysia Bhd for RM34 million in 2018.
Established in 1963, the A&W franchise is the first and oldest quick-service restaurant in the country, with the first outlet set up in Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, followed by Malaysia’s first drive-in restaurant in Petaling Jaya.
