European fast food giant Quick opened a chain restaurant in Shijiazhuang, capital city of north China's Hebei Province on Saturday, marking its first venture into the Chinese market.
Besides the standard fast food of hamburgers, French fries and cola, Quick offers three types of bread, eight hamburgers with various fixings, five fried items and salad, as well as different-flavored beverages and ice cream designed for Chinese consumers.
Quick has held a cautious attitude toward the great achievements other Western fast-food chains have obtained in China, said Xu Jianping, chief representative of Quick in China.
It was after two years of market research and analysis and a successful pilot project in Qingdao City of east China's Shandong Province that Quick finally decided to enter the country, Xu said.
According to Xu, the Belgium-based fast food group has chosen to cooperate with China's native investors, a different entrance from that of the American-styled fast food industry characterized by McDonald's and KFC.
With a Quick franchise with its brand and technology support, domestic investors can become involved in the operation and management of its chain stores in line with a unified style and business concept, Xu said.
Quick will gradually approach Beijing and other major cities with the Shijiazhuang store serving to accustom consumers to its flavors, which is one of its strategies to avoid face-to-face confrontation with McDonald's and KFC at the first stage, Xu added.
Quick also plans to set up more chain stores along China's expressways as well as in medium- and small-sized cities in three to five years.
Founded in 1970, Quick currently has over 700 chain restaurants spread across Europe and is the continent's only fast food enterprise that can contend with McDonald's and KFC, Xu said.
(Xinhua News Agency July 6, 2003)
