In a previous article we looked at Thai food. What really makes Thai food unique? How popular is it? What are the most famous dishes? Why are there not more Thai restaurants in the International market? What opportunities exist to bring Thai food to your local area, and as an investor does it make sense to do so? You may want to read it before reading this article and you can find the link here:
We have determined that there is a huge demand region wide for good authentic Thai restaurants. We also saw why it is so important that you get good support from a Thailand based brand. In this article we will focus on 2 amazing Thai brands that began, and still remain as Thai companies. This is very important as the majority of Thai restaurant brands are not Thai and never have been. They were created by Americans or Singaporeans (or others), for those specific markets. They do not serve authentic Thai cuisine, and actually don’t even claim to. I find it takes a Thailand based company to really understand complex Thai cuisine and provide good enough support so that a franchisee can remain authentic, fill the demand of their local customers, and ultimately be successful as a business.
We are going to look at both Mango Tree and Mango Chili. While completely separate brands, they actually are both affiliated with the COCA group, which has been successful both in Thailand and outside for more than 63 years. They are owned by a Thai family, and are now into their 3rd generation of family leadership.
There is a massive demand for great Thai food all around the Middle East and Asia. There are variations from market to market however. Some markets have a larger gap in the upscale casual dining segment, while some are looking more for the fast, simple, and value priced option. Let’s look at solutions to both market demands.
For almost 30 years, in more than 14 countries, Mango Tree has been delighting guests with its contemporary designs, superior hospitality, and its amazing authentic Thai cuisine. They live their philosophy of “We only serve to our guests what we would feed our own children.” Which was true 30 years ago and still true today. They Aspire to be the premier global brand of Thai & Asian cuisine and to establish Mango Tree in every major city in the world by delivering quality Thai cuisine with authentic taste and true Thai hospitality.
Mango Tree is a casual lifestyle brand that focuses on being a destination restaurant for special occasions, business lunches, and those planned nights out. They never fail to please with their lobster pad thai, crab curry, and many other premium dishes all presented beautifully.
Normally most cities will only have 1 or 2 Mango Tree outlets. So, when become a Mango Tree franchisee you also have exclusive rights to Mango Tree Café, Mango Tree Bangkok Eatery, Mango Tree Kitchen and Grab & Go. These 2nd and 3rd tier locations bring the fantastic Mango Tree food to fast casual dining at an affordable price. This allows you to capture both the premium and the day to day dining in your territory.
Mango Tree is very flexible and suitable for any market. They can cover everything from beef, seafood, fish, vegetarian, vegan, and even Halal. Depends on the local market and customers. It has been proven successful all across Asia, Europe, England, and the Middle East.
Mango Trees are normally around 400sqm, 110-200 seats, with 5-star service, and opened in a premium location. A high traffic location, near city landmarks or high density populations with easy access. They can be free standing or in a shopping mall, rooftop or premium office building. The other tiers can be put anywhere, including airports, train stations, food courts, nightlife spots, or suburbs.
If you read the above, you’re probably thinking Mango Tree has everything covered, why did the company need to create a new brand, Mango Chili? Great question, I am glad you asked …..
Mango Chili Thai Café is young, fun, fast, simple, and fresh. They provide good food fast, not fast food, but it is firmly in that fast casual restaurant market segment. They are very casual and designed to handle high volumes in a small space. They have a high focus on take-away and delivery, and are for the normal day to day dining of everyone in the location’s trade area. Mango Chili is perfect for young demographics, in a post-covid world.
Their menu is also flexible and can be suitable for any market in the world. It will normally consist of about 25 top selling Thai food items like curry, spring rolls, grapow, pad thai, and other items everyone recognizes. Then each location has 1 special USP (unique selling point) and they have many to choose from. BBQ grill, beef noodles, or rotisserie. This simplicity allows smaller locations, doesn’t require an expensive chef in the kitchen, allows fast service and high turnover, and much simpler operations.
Locations are very flexible, and can be just a QSR counter with about 35sqm, while their normal restaurants are 80-120sqm. Both Mango Tree and Mango Chili allow franchisees to source most ingredients locally once they have been approved by their QC team. They do supply certain sauces from their Thailand factory to maintain that great authentic Thai taste they are famous for.
Conclusion:
Thai food is hot! In the popular, in high demand, way. Doesn’t matter if you live in UAE or Saudi Arabia, India or Bangladesh, Korea, Australia, or somewhere in ASEAN you likely have a shortage of good Thai food and big market gaps waiting to be filled.
The fantastic Bangkok based team of Mango Chili and Mango Tree would like to speak with you about bringing some fantastic Thai cuisine in your marketplace.
Mango Tree is part of the COCA group with a long 63 year history. You may watch their special 60th anniversary video here:
Robert Beausoleil is a franchise consultant and has been visiting Asia for 25 years, and has lived in Vietnam for more than 12 years. He works as the Director of Business Development and Franchise Operations for VF Franchise Consulting. He has extensive experience in franchising, both as a franchisors and as a franchisee. You may contact him at [email protected] or on LinkedIn @ linkedin.com/in/robert-beausoleil-6a0027b1
This content was originally published here.