Nando's International
Wits Business School
WBS-2004-4
Nando’s International: Flying High with a Global Chicken Brand
Josi McKenzie sat back and considered the development of Nando’s International since she had joined the company in June 1992, when there were 12 stores in South Africa, and international exposure was limited to Australia and the United Kingdom. Her role was then defined as marketing, which in Nando’s came to mean an absolute understanding of most of the business elements outside of finance. It was January 2004, and together with Robert Brozin, the chief executive officer and co-founder of Nando’s, and Mike Denoon-Stevens, the international development director, she had been strategising as to which global opportunities offered the most promise in the New Year. The company had performed extremely well once again in 2003, with the result that Nando’s had more than trebled its number of stores over the 16 years since inception. By the end of 2003, there were a total of 450 stores throughout the world, 186 of them being in South Africa. McKenzie felt good about this record, especially because the group had managed to improve market share in an extremely competitive industry and a volatile global economy. However, she felt that there was enough potential in the company to perform even better on a global basis in 2004. Since 1997, when 27% of Nando’s stores were located in international markets, that figure had grown to almost 60% by the end of 2003. Nando’s ascribed this success to two strategic approaches. Firstly, it had more recently focussed on a what it termed a hubbing growth strategy as opposed to a shotgun strategy. This meant that the company had concentrated on developing existing geographic regions, chiefly the Middle East and Asia, instead of taking any opportunity that presented itself. Secondly, it had placed a greater emphasis on the correct positioning of the Nando’s brand in each of its international markets. The critical issue up for debate for 2004
WBS-2004-4
Nando’s International: Flying High with a Global Chicken Brand
Josi McKenzie sat back and considered the development of Nando’s International since she had joined the company in June 1992, when there were 12 stores in South Africa, and international exposure was limited to Australia and the United Kingdom. Her role was then defined as marketing, which in Nando’s came to mean an absolute understanding of most of the business elements outside of finance. It was January 2004, and together with Robert Brozin, the chief executive officer and co-founder of Nando’s, and Mike Denoon-Stevens, the international development director, she had been strategising as to which global opportunities offered the most promise in the New Year. The company had performed extremely well once again in 2003, with the result that Nando’s had more than trebled its number of stores over the 16 years since inception. By the end of 2003, there were a total of 450 stores throughout the world, 186 of them being in South Africa. McKenzie felt good about this record, especially because the group had managed to improve market share in an extremely competitive industry and a volatile global economy. However, she felt that there was enough potential in the company to perform even better on a global basis in 2004. Since 1997, when 27% of Nando’s stores were located in international markets, that figure had grown to almost 60% by the end of 2003. Nando’s ascribed this success to two strategic approaches. Firstly, it had more recently focussed on a what it termed a hubbing growth strategy as opposed to a shotgun strategy. This meant that the company had concentrated on developing existing geographic regions, chiefly the Middle East and Asia, instead of taking any opportunity that presented itself. Secondly, it had placed a greater emphasis on the correct positioning of the Nando’s brand in each of its international markets. The critical issue up for debate for 2004