Suntory Holdings Ltd has announced plans to sell all its share holdings in its fast-food restaurant subsidiary First-Kitchen, to Wendy’s Japan. The sale price was not disclosed but is estimated to be in the billions of yen.
By selling First-Kitchen to rival hamburger chain Wendy’s, Suntory said it intends to focus its management resources back on its core business: non-alcoholic beverages and liquor, Fuji TV reported.
Wendy's said it will utilize existing First-Kitchen stores to strengthen its presence in the hamburger industry and will continue to operate stores using the existing First-Kitchen brand name.
The deal is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
First-Kitchen has 130 stores, with 100 of them concentrated in the Tokyo metropolitan area and annual sales of about 10 billion yen.
On the contrary, Wendy’s success in the Japanese fast food market hasn’t been as successful. Formerly operating under the Japanese retailer Daiei Group (until its purchase by Zensho Co Ltd in 2002), Wendy’s pulled out of the Japanese market in 2009 before returning in 2011. Currently, Wendy’s Japan operates just one store in Shinjuku’s Akebonobashi area.
© Japan Today
13 Comments
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sensei258
Whatever, the phonetic spelling was not the point, I still had to bite my lip to keep from laughing
elkarlo
What an odd combo. I hope Wendy's can leverage FK and be able to use it to get into Japan. We all know that decent burgers aren't really that common here.
nath
They call it 'fa-kin' not 'fu-kin'.
DannytheGaijin
Good ol' ファッキン. Always filled me food as well as laughs.
sensei258
First Kitchen is very popular among Japanese High School students. When I asked one student "Which fast-food restaurant is the best", she quickly replied "I like Fu-kin the best". I'm not kidding.
kohakuebisu
Is First Kitchen the one with shake-in-the-bag flavour packets for the fries? And the burger with the fried egg? In shopping mall food courts and the like?
I went to Wendy's in Osaka in the 1990s but all I remember is them having chili, square patties, and being slightly better than McDs.
Alita Schratwieser
Your info is incorrect. Wendy's has 2 shops. The first one was opened in Roppongi (and is unfortunately both a Wendy's / Lotteria... eww at the second)
And dunno why the hate for McDonald's. Still delicious to me.
Manny Pereira
It's not surprising if Wendy's moves to expand in Japan now that McDonald's has allowed their brand to be permanently damaged here.
gokai_wo_maneku
You would hardly know that Wendy's is here. Are they going to turn all of the First Kitchens into Wendy's?
katsu78
This is not how that expression is used.
Matthew Adam Arnold
I've eaten at a First Kitchen/Wendy's combined store near Roppongi and it was way better than a normal stateside Wendy's. Hopefully this will be the model going forward.
Jason Santana
First kitchen is way better than Wendy's
Wakarimasen
Strange deal. Both crummy outlets.