Investing in their brand through trademarks and franchising, BreadTalk has 68 outlets all over the region and is looking to expand further.

Famous for its pork-floss buns that made waves in 2000, home-grown bakery BreadTalk now has over 200 products and can be found in 8 countries.

A Mix Of Strategies

Five-year-old BreadTalk opts for franchising when venturing abroad. This allows optimization of resources. The company focuses on branding while the local partners focus on the network and operations.

In more familiar markets like China and Singapore, BreadTalk prefers to own-and-operate. In total, the company has 42 wholly owned outlets and 26 franchised outlets in the region.

Making The Dough

Head of Brand Development, Joyce Koh, says: “We opened shop in 2000. In our first year, we had a lot of enquires, especially from Indonesia. But we felt we were not ready operationally.”

BreadTalk waited until it had built up its business development and resources to support a partner before setting up its first outlet in Indonesia in 2003.

“It was a brand new game for us so we decided to engage professional expertise to help us develop the franchise,” Joyce recalls. BreadTalk also works closely with Government agencies such as IE Singapore which provides networking opportunities, intelligence, research and groundwork.

Choosing Partners

“We have been blessed with partners who are proactive. They approach us so we do not need to source for them. We look for partners who are dedicated and have the drive and passion to build the business,” says Joyce, adding that BreadTalk has rejected big conglomerates, as they did not fulfil BreadTalk’s requirements.

Fees And Royalties

BreadTalk’s Master Franchise fee is USD$600,000 to USD$800,000. Franchisees will also have to pay royalties each month. Bi-annual trips are made to the franchise outlets to ensure that franchisees are following the guidelines and doing well.

Intellectual Creations

At the top of BreadTalk’s agenda is creative innovation. They maintain this through training and constant performance reviews.

Being innovative and adaptable helps BreadTalk succeed in overseas markets. It maintains 80% of its product range and adapts 20% to the local palate. For example, BreadTalk used halal mixes and created new recipes at its Kuwait outlet. “Kuwaitis have a sweet tooth. So, we created a range of mini pastries and packed them in a specially designed gift box. It has proven to be very successful,” Joyce says.

The company is diligent in protecting intellectual creations. For instance, the BreadTalk brand is a trademark in 30 countries and is a pending trademark in about 60.

Brand Recognition

In the most recent Singapore Promising Brand Awards (2005), BreadTalk clinched the overall Most Popular Brand Award. There were more than 150 brands who were vying for the accolade.

Winning such awards helps to strengthen BreadTalk's brand both locally and internationally. And will, undoubtedly, help the company to continue to franchise its way into global markets.