Japan’s second-largest fast food franchise, MOS Burger, is arriving in Vietnam this year.
MOS Burger, founded in 1972, currently operates more than 1,700 outlets in Japan and international markets. According to Nikkei Asian Review, the burger brand is training staff for a Vietnam launch this year, though an exact opening date is unclear at the time of writing.
Mos Food Services, the brand’s parent company, is looking to set up a joint venture in Vietnam in March and establish 10 restaurants over three years.
Apart from Japan, MOS has a presence in Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia and South Korea. Vietnam and the Philippines are on its expansion calendar in 2020. Fans of the chain enjoy signature meals like the “MOS Burger,” teriyaki burger and yakiniku rice burger.
Nikkei adds that the company is collaborating with a Da Nang university to build a program that teaches students Japanese and restaurant management. It’s also planning to hire 50 staff members to work and train in Japan under a new work visa scheme. The move is to cushion the impact of aging franchisees at home by looking to Vietnam and other Asian nations for manpower, training them in Japan and sending them back to their home countries as managers of local operations.
Last year, according to the newspaper, MOS Chairman Atsuhi Sakurada visited Saigon to scope out the market, business environment and ingredient suppliers, and the trip was successful enough to warrant further business ties. “I felt the same passion that Japan used to have,” Sakurada said of the local market.
Vietnam’s rising middle class, with ample disposable income and a soft spot for Japanese products, presents an opportunity for MOS Burger to attract more local fans, but there’s an inherent challenge as the fast food chain is relatively unknown in the market, compared to long-term mainstays such as KFC or Lotteria.
Late last year, Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo opened its first flagship store in Saigon, while a store in Hanoi is launching on March 6.
[Photo via Sunnybank]
