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Senior Business Reporter

FAST-FOOD restaurant operator Simbisa Brands intends to invest US$23 million in opening 87 new stores in the 2023 financial year in Zimbabwe and Kenya markets.

Of the 87, the restaurants operator is eyeing 45 outlets in Zimbabwe and 30 in Kenya, the firm said in its latest annual financials for year ending 30 June.

Already, 27 new outlets were opened in the year and served 28 percent more customers in the year to June than it did in the previous year.

“The upcoming financial year has exciting prospects for the group. The group has a significant pipeline of new stores and expects to open 87 new stores in FY23, mainly in Zimbabwe (45) and Kenya (30) at a cost of about US$23 million.

“The group is generating sufficiently strong free cash-flows to drive this growth,” reads part of the report. The board intends to implement a number of initiatives to invest any additional free cash generated in additional areas in order to achieve the groups’ overall target growth trajectory.”

The company is one of the successful entities listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE).
It operates popular brands such as Nando’s, Steers, Haefelis, Baker’s Inn, Pizza Inn, Creamy Inn and Chicken Inn.

Nandos

The firm has commended fiscal measures put in place by authorities saying it “hopes that the prudent and pragmatic regulation of the fiscal space will continue and usher in a more stable and predictable economic environment in Zimbabwe in the medium to long term.”

To enhance operations, Simbisa said significant capital investment was made in the year under review into upgrading the operations’ central stores and central kitchen to increase storage capacity and make the facilities more efficient through automating and streamlining production processes. These initiatives have reduced processing times, enhanced efficiencies, improved product quality, and minimised wastage, said Simbisa.

Debt restructuring was adopted during the period under review to manage the impact of exchange rate volatility and prescribed lending rate increases. On financial performance, Simbisa Brands saw its revenue increased by 48 percent in Zimbabwe, which saw a 28 percent in customer growth.

“Simbisa Zimbabwe performed commendably in the period under review, despite a challenging operating environment. Customer counts grew 28 percent year on year while inflation-adjusted ZWL average-spend grew 15,7 percent to deliver a 48,1 percent increase in inflation-adjusted ZWL revenue in FY2022 from the prior year,” said the company.

“Top line growth was driven by new store openings, with 27 counters opened in the financial year under review to close 30 June 2022 with 261 counters in operation.