Wendys Chain to Withdraw from Japanese Market

Posted by Chris O'Sullivan

Wendy's has announced that they will remove their restaurants from Japan after a seven year presence in the Asian market. Wendy's is currently the third most popular burger chain in the US behind McDonalds and Burger King. However, the Asian market apparently did not offer the same amount of support for the franchise. All restaurants will be closed by the end of December in a market that has been dominated by McDonalds.

Zensho, which has operate the 71 Wendys restaurants in Japan, claims it will now turn its focus to beef-bowl restaurants (whatever that is). While Wendys has generated modest profits in the Japanese market, it could not overcome industry giant McDonalds which currently holds a 65% market share in the country.

McDonalds first moved into the Japanese market in 1971 and there are currently over 3,700 stores in the country. In comparison, Burger King currently operates only 16 stores in Japan. It appears unlikely that any American fast food chain will be able to top McDonalds in its dominance of the Asian market.

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