Burger King's India operator reports wider Q3 loss as consumers cut back

Restaurant Brands Asia

29/01/2025 12:53

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia  RESR.NS , the
India franchisee of Burger King, reported a wider third-quarter
loss on Wednesday, weighed by high costs and inflation-hit
customers cutting back on dining out.
    The company reported a net loss of 504 million rupees ($5.82
million) for the three months ended Dec. 31, from a loss of
361.8 million rupees a year earlier.
    Same-store sales at Indian Burger King restaurants slipped
0.5%, with the restaurant operator blaming "flat demand."
    Global fast-food chains, including Burger King and
McDonald's, have been doubling down on cheaper options over the
last few quarters to attract India's price-sensitive customers
amid high inflation.
    Burger King offered some of the cheapest deals in the
industry in the country, including a bundle of two vegetarian
burgers at 79 rupees and of two chicken burgers at 99 rupees.
    This, along with opening more outlets, propped up the
company's revenue by 5.8% to 6.39 billion rupees.
    Its total store count in India stood at 510, up 69 from last
year and 46 from the previous quarter.
    However, the company was also affected by high prices of
ingredients, which led to an 8.5% increase in total expenses to
7.03 billion rupees.
    Cafe chain Tata Starbucks and pizza group Papa John's
International  PZZA.O , meanwhile, have said they are rethinking
their India plans amid subdued consumer sentiment.
    Earlier in the day, Restaurant Brands Asia's rival Westlife
Foodworld  WEST.NS , the operator of McDonald's  MCD.N  in
India, reported a 59% drop in quarterly profit.
    Restaurant Brands International  QSR.TO , which has Burger
King restaurants in more than 100 countries, will report
quarterly results on Feb. 12, according to its website.

($1 = 86.5340 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai and Hritam
Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)
 ((Praveen.Paramasivam@thomsonreuters.com; +91 867-525-3569;))