After partnering with Cafe Coffee Day and Barista, UB Group's Four Seasons Wines Ltd has tied up with Pizza Hut to have its wines served at select outlets of the restaurant chain a tie-up from which both firms see spirited sales growths.
The alliance is a part of Pizza Hut's strategy to transform itself from a quick service restaurant to an affordable casual dining brand, Sandeep Kataria, chief marketing officer, Yum! Restaurants India, said on Wednesday, announcing the partnership.
The companies did not reveal the financial terms of the alliance.
Yum! A Restaurant is the local arm of the US based Yum! Brands Inc, which owns the Pizza Hut brand.
“We expect an addition of 1520% to our sales from this tie up, said Kataria.
Pizza Hut earned at least `300 crore of revenue in fiscal 20092010.
Starting with Bangalore, Pizza Hut will offer wine labels such as Chenin Blanc, Shiraz and Blush at 5% of its outlets over the next year. The restaurant chain is also in talks with brewers to serve beer at its outlets.
Four Seasons is targeting 30% year-on-year growth in sales. “These tie ups (with the pizza and coffee chains) will make this happen and may be even take it to 40%,“ said Abhay Kewadkar, chief wine maker and director of Four Seasons.
He refused to say how the alliances with the coffee chains have fared, saying it was too early to gauge any impact on sales. Four Seasons partnered with Barista in June and with Cafe Coffee Day in August.
Debashish Mukherjee, principal at consulting firm AT Kearney, says globally, quick service restaurants are introducing alcoholic beverages at select outlets to cater to a class of clients seeking a more casual dining experience.
“Burger King selectively offers alcohol at its outlets. It's a recent global trend. How it pans out in India will be interesting to see as for many Indians, places serving alcohol become a nonfamily affair place, said Mukherjee.
