Latest News | Lockdown: Focus on Winning Customers' Trust on Reopening, No Price Hikes, Say QSR Chains
Get latest articles and stories on Latest News at LatestLY. Quick service restaurant chains, set to resume dine-in services from June 8, said they are working on value offers while preparing for end-to-end contactless dining experience as they look to win the trust of customers.
New Delhi, Jun 4 (PTI) Quick service restaurant chains, set to resume dine-in services from June 8, said they are working on value offers while preparing for end-to-end contactless dining experience as they look to win the trust of customers.
Quick service restaurant (QSR) brands like Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Subway also said they have no plans to hike prices to pass on the cost of investments in hygiene and safety measures, besides reduction in seating capacity to enforce social distancing.
"There are no plans of hiking prices as we understand that the customers will be conscious of spending. We are expecting a big surge in contactless delivery and takeaway which will help shore-up revenues.
"Customers will choose brands that they trust, they will also be value conscious. Therefore, we will be regularly offering relevant value offers," Pizza Hut Indian Subcontinent Managing Director Merrill Pereyra told PTI.
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The government has allowed hospitality services, hotels and shopping malls to resume operations from June 8, while the lockdown in containment zones has been extended till June 30 to contain the spread of COVID-19 cases.
Pereyra said it is crucial to invest in stringent hygiene and safety measures to assure customers.
"Making that effort now will help the organised fast food industry grow significantly in future. We are also ensuring our digital capabilities and platforms are upgraded to handle the increased scope because contactless dine-in will have a big digital role to play going forward and online delivery and takeaway channels will also grow," Pereyra said.
Expressing similar views, Burman Hospitality, which is the master franchise partner in India for Taco Bell, said it has no plans to pass on the increased cost to consumers.
"This is more important to us than the bottom line, as we believe our customers will appreciate the sacrifices we are making and we will retain their loyalty for the long term. We are ready to re-open our restaurants with these additional hygiene and safety measures as soon as possible, following government directives," Burman Hospitality Director Gaurav Burman said.
"We know our customers have missed the opportunity to eat out and we are looking forward to welcoming them back as soon as possible and offering the same value proposition they have come to love us for.
"Taco Bell is not planning on passing the extra costs we will incur to our customers through higher pricing," Burman added.
Subway said this as an "evolving situation" and it would progressively reopen as soon as it is confident that its restaurants are perfectly aligned with all regulations.
"We are confident that responsible brands, having sharp focus on hygiene and safety, would win back public confidence swiftly.
"At Subway, we have instituted a strict regimen of safety that includes hourly restaurant sanitation, regular hand washing, temporary discontinuation of dine-in basket, new gloves for Sandwich Artist for every order, wearing of face mask amongst a host of other measures," a company spokesperson said.
There will be an initial hesitation in dining out, but this will soon be replaced by cautious visits to malls and restaurants, industry players said.
"At this time, consumers will have a sense of euphoria and will want to spend generously on brands that they can trust. This period is crucial for dine-in restaurants to demonstrate strict adherence to safety and hygiene standards," said Pereyra.
McDonald's said its primary focus is on customers and employees, and it will adhere to the authorities' standard operating procedures (SOPs) for restaurants.
"At McDonald's the safety of our customers and employees remains our top most priority and we will ensure taking appropriate steps in compliance with the Government orders," McDonald's India (North and East) said.
Meanwhile, homegrown QSR brand Burger Singh said it has no plans to open dine-in facilities from June 8.
"With the timings of the dine-in restaurants proposed in the guidelines as well as the social distancing measures, I don't think the dine-in format will have the box level economics we need to survive," Burger Singh CEO and co-founder Kabir Jeet Singh said.
"We assume that not even the consumer will immediately rush to a restaurant for a dine-in experience. Therefore, we have taken a call not to open any dine in facilities at the restaurant at the moment," he added.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)