Island Grill poised for Caribbean growth

Ross Sheil, Online Co-ordinator rsheil@jamaicaobserver.com Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Island Grill is branching out into St Lucia where it will open a new outlet located in the town of Rodney Bay next year, part of the Jamaican fast-food chain's plans to open in a total of 12 countries over the next 10 years.

The Lyn family Michael McRae-owned Chicken Mistress Limited now has 15 Island Grill outlets in Jamaica and one at Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados, opened last December, with another location being considered in that country, said chief executive officer Thalia Lyn. They started in 1991 with the trading name 'Chicken Supreme' before the rebranding exercise in 1998 which introduced a more recognisably Jamaican menu.

The expansion is being carried out in partnership with Goddard Catering which owns a majority stake in the Caribbean outlets. Goddard and GraceKennedy, trading together as Versair In-Flite Services Limited, own a 40 per cent stake in the two Island Grill outlets at the Sangster and Norman Manley International Airports.

"For Island Grill, it is an excellent opportunity to expand our brand into other Caribbean and Central/South American countries where Goddard already has a base. It has been a partnership based on integrity and candour, with each partner bringing different skill sets and we've had really happy results!" said Lyn.

Asked about sales at the Barbados Island Grill outlet, she said that figures were comparable to the Manor Park, St Andrew outlet.

Meanwhile, Goddard is a subsidiary of Bajan company Goddard Enterprises Limited (GEL) which has a wide portfolio of business interests including 23 flight kitchens in the Caribbean, Central and South America, the West Indies Rum Distillery, Goddard's Shipping and Tours, Purity Bakeries, Fidelity Motors and Sagicor.

She believes that Goddard can help Island Grill meet a Caribbean-wide demand for Jamaican food, arguably the region's dominant cuisine.

"Jamaican food has a unique market position in that of all the Caribbean foods, it has differentiated itself the best. So much so that jerk and patties could almost be classified as mainstream. A restaurant concept or chain based on the tastes, flavours and traditions of Jamaican and Caribbean cooking does not exist and Island Grill plans to fill that need in the market."

Once in those countries Island Grill will again compete with the American franchises that dominate the Caribbean fast-food landscape, including Kentucky Fried Chicken, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway, Dominos and Wendy's - all familiar to consumers here in Jamaica. However, she is optimistic of remaining competitive with the assistance of Goddard.

"Costs are always a concern. But price is not the primary reason people choose Island Grill, it's the uniqueness of our offering and the quality of the experience. However, our prices are always competitive, and there again, having Goddard as a partner will help us with economies of scale that would not accrue to operating a single unit."

Meanwhile, ingredients and packaging will continue to be supplied from Jamaica, in accordance with the Island Grill slogan 'Real Jamaican Jerk'.

"There's also intellectual transference - the Jamaican team trains and gives support and audits. The Island Grill quality, service, cleanliness (QSC) standards are audited every quarter and the Balanced Score Card is linked to ours in Jamaica."

Joking that it was a shame that new Jamaican Olympic 100 and 200 metres champion and world record holder Usain Bolt had been eating chicken nuggets in Beijing because there was no Island Grill available in China, she said that the company had already received inquiries about opening an outlet from that country, among others.

Having previously failed with the two Island Grill outlets in Florida, Lyn said that the priority remained the Caribbean itself. Island Grill previously pulled out of a partnership with Walkerswood in the Bamboula restaurant in London feeling that the project strategy was geared to promoting Walkerswood products rather than opening new outlets. Outside the Caribbean will be left to 'Stage Two', she explained.

"The initial plan is to concentrate on our local Caribbean market. Entry to other markets such as the US, Europe and Asia is not a priority at this time, although we get numerous franchise requests from all over the globe. We are focused on strengthening our Jamaican base - our surveys show that customers would frequent Island Grill more if we had a broader network - and expanding regionally."

The additional outlets will be smaller in scale to allow the chain to expand quicker and may have reduced menu items to increase speed of service, which is the most common customer complaint, she said.

"We get about 4,000 comments per month and the biggest complaint is speed. We have to cut down on the menu options and we're trying to do a lot more prep at the commissary and then send it out which will free up more people in the prep area to move them to the front and serve customers."