KUALA LUMPUR: American restaurant chain A&W, in adapting to consumers’ complaints of rising cost of living, will soon introduce more affordable set meals, priced between RM8.90 and RM9.90.
The set meals will be much cheaper than the current ones priced between RM14 and RM15 per set.
The ongoing promotion of Citrus Golden Chicken set, which serves salted egg sauce and a side order, will lasts until May 29, 2019.
“We'll introduce more affordable set meals in May,” said George Ang, the man behind Inter Mark Resources Sdn Bhd, the new owner of A&W Malaysia Sdn Bhd.
Ang, who has over 20 years of experience in the food and beverage business, said A&W restaurants now served fresh chicken.
Although fresh chicken is more expensive than frozen cuts, Ang is committed to offer better value to customers. "We've been absorbing the extra costs.”
Since January 1, 2019, he has had 10 A&W restaurants to partner GrabFood for purchases to be delivered to customers' doorsteps. By the end of the year, Ang plans to expand the partnership with GrabFood to 18 outlets.
Next year, Ang wants to double up standalone drive-through A&W restaurants to eight from the current four. They will run on a 24-hour basis, a welcomed convenience for consumers.
When asked about the famous drive-through in Petaling Jaya, Ang confirmed that outlet will be demolished at the end of this year, by the new landowner.
KUB Malaysia Bhd had recently sold the land, which the iconic A&W restaurant landmark sits on, to Kasmuncak Holdings Sdn Bhd for RM37 million.
Ang remarked the impending closure by the new landowner would be a loss because that restaurant brings in RM4 million sales annually.
“It is a profitable outlet. The scheduled shutdown at the end of this year will have an impact on our business.
“We're talking with the developer to see if we can eventually rent the ground floor of the new building for our A&W restaurant,” he said, adding it would probably take up to four years, if the new landowner is agreeable.
When Ang bought A&W Malaysia Sdn Bhd from KUB, for RM34 million, in September 2018, there were only 40 outlets throughout the country. Since then, Ang had added seven to the network.
"Next month, we'll open at Penang Hill, One Mont Kiara and SouthKey megamall in Johor Bahru," he said.
Ang is no stranger to the food and beverage industry as he is one of the founders and directors of Revenue Valley Sdn Bhd, which operates Manhattan Fish Market, Tony Roma’s and NY Steak Shack in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
He sees technology in the restaurant as making it easier and faster for the consumer. In some instances, technology allows customers to order ahead without stepping into the restaurant.
It is no surprise the younger generation are more familiar at making online purchases, off their smartphones.
At the same time, with machine learning functions incorporated into mobile apps, quick service restaurants, like A&W, can collect customer data to create personalised experiences.
Ang sees digital ordering via mobile apps or self-order kiosks as a mid-term solution to reduce staff headcount at the restaurant counter.
In the months ahead, Ang plans for A&W to enhance its breakfast service. “Today, a few outlets offer breakfast service from 8am. But soon, we would have every outlet outside the malls to offer breakfast.”
He also wants to automate as many manual tasks to raise staff productivity, as A&W add on more outlets. Plans to invest into cloud computing to connect daily sales data of each outlet is in the pipeline.
He is also motivating existing staff to take ownership and be more efficient so that they can earn higher wages.
"We want to introduce self-ordering kiosks to reduce reliance on manual labour. Such kiosks would appeal to the tech-savvy customers who are in a hurry," he said.
Previously, customers patronising A&W must pay cash for their meals. Ang is looking at widening payment options to include credit cards, debit cards and QR codes offered by banks.
As Ang open up new A&W restaurants, lengthen opening hours at drive-throughs and offer better value-for-money meals, he targets "RM100 million in sales at the end of this year."
This year, United States-based A Great American Brand LLC, the franchisor of A&W Malaysia, will celebrate its 100th anniversary worldwide.
Ang said A&W Malaysia is offering unique merchandise and collectibles to customers to commemorate the centennial celebrations.
Back in 1919, Roy Allen set up a roadside drink stand in Lodi, California, to introduce a new beverage at a parade honoring returning World War I veterans.
As the beverage gained popularity, Allen took on Frank Wright as a business partner in 1922. Wright was his employee at Lodi.
Allen and Wright combined their initials and formally named the non-alcoholic beverage A&W Root Beer, which is a blend of sugarcane, water, herbs, bark, spices and berries.
Soon after, the enterprising Allen secured a trademark and made A&W the first franchised chain restaurant in America.