The UK's leading Asian QSR brand, Chopstix has announced plans to open four new outlets by the end of July, as it continues a steady programme of growth in 2022.
Planned openings in Brixton, Canary Wharf, Cardiff St David’s, and Kingston-upon-Thames, will follow three recent launches, in Glasgow, Oxford, and Middlebrook, Bolton – Britain’s biggest retail park.
Chopstix operates more than 75 restaurants across the UK, including 22 franchise stores operated by the likes of Welcome Break and Applegreen.
Jon Lake, managing director, said, “We’re gathering very strong momentum, not just in terms of sales but also the amount of opportunity we have to expand through equity stores, franchise partnerships and also through brand extensions and collaborations.
'As such we are very confident about the year ahead and the prospects for the Chopstix brand overall, and look forward to sharing more on these various initiatives in due course.”
The growth news follows the publication of Chopstix’s accounts for the year to 25th April 2021, which showed a resilient performance in a period significantly hampered by COVID-19 enforced closures and trading restrictions.
Turnover for the year stood at £16.2m, while the business launched partnerships with two new franchise partners, Sparta Foods in Burslem and CSDK Ltd in Sheffield, in the period.
Commenting on the accounts to 25 April 2021, Jon added, “Like all companies in our space, these historic numbers look somewhat different to what was originally budgeted, and represent a very robust performance, given the circumstances and challenges of the health crisis.
'What has been most pleasing is how the Chopstix team pulled together and drove the business through this period and ensured we recovered quickly. I’d like to thank all our store teams and the support centre for their dedication and commitment.”
Established in Camden Market in 2002 by entrepreneurs Sam Elia and Menashe Sadik, Chopstix celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Its locations stretch from Aberdeen in the North to Southampton in the South, and from Norwich in the East to Bridgend in the West. The business also has a significant footprint in Ireland.
The fast-growing group is on track to deliver a busy year of growth in 2022, with at least 12 stores set to open before the end of the year, through a mix of directly owned and operated stores (equity stores), and also in concert with partners, building on its successful and established franchise operation.
In addition, the business also has relationships with delivery partners Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats, as well as several brand extensions including a grocery sauce range, plus further innovations in the pipeline.