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ZEN ready for 1st trading day on 20 Feb, confident in stock's capacity to draw investors' interest, to fuel exponential growth by launching new restaurants in 2019, 2020


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After handsomely winning subscriptions for IPO shares by the institutional and retail investors who believe in its business potential, ZEN is now ready for its first trading day on 20 February, and it is confident that the listed stock will attract healthy interest. Its management highlighted its strong position as a provider of integrated food services that operates restaurant, franchise and connected businesses. They also emphasized its aggressive plan to open more than 340 restaurants, in addition to the existing 255, in 2019 and 2020 to create long-term growth.

MR BOONYONG TANSAKUL, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (CEO) OF ZEN CORPORATION GROUP PCL (“Company” or “ZEN”), revealed that the Company is prepared for the first trading day for its stock (ticker symbol: ZEN) on 20 February and it is confident that the stock will draw healthy interest from investors. He noted that the 75 million capital-increase shares (which account for 25% of the Company’s post-IPO issued and paid-up capital) were enthusiastically subscribed by both institutional and retail investors, who recognized the Company’s strong fundamentals and position as a provider of integrated food services that operates restaurant, franchise and connected businesses (delivery, catering, restaurant management, restaurant consultancy and retailing of foods, e.g. ready-to-cook foods, ready-to-eat foods).

The Company currently owns 12 brands and uses them for a total of 255 restaurants. Six of the brands – “ZEN”, “Musha by ZEN”, “Sushi Cyu Carnival Yakiniku”, “AKA”, “Tetsu” and “On the Table Tokyo Café” – are for 88 Japanese restaurants. The remaining six are for 167 Thai restaurants – “Tummour”, “Lao Yuan”, “Jaew Hon”, “Pho”, “de Tummour” and “Khiang”. “Khiang", their latest brand, is for Thai-style à la carte/street food restaurants. The first “Khiang” restaurant has been launched at PTT petrol station, Chetsadabodin branch, Nonthaburi.

Thanks to growth in the restaurant and franchise businesses following increases in the number of restaurants, the Company posted impressive nine-month results (January to September 2018), with a total revenue of THB 2.2263 billion (a 21.9% Y-o-Y rise) and a net profit of THB 108.7 million (a 121% Y-o-Y jump). It seeks to ensure continuous growth by introducing 348 more restaurants in 2019 and 2020. In 2019, it will open 123 restaurants, 87 of which will be operated by franchisees and the remaining 36 will be operated by its own. In 2020, it will open 255 restaurants, 175 of which will be operated by franchisees and the remaining 50 of which will be operated by its own.

“We are ready to expand our branch network in these two years. We have invested in internal management systems and increased the workforce size. We have also strengthened our financial position through fundraising in the stock market. We are now aiming for leadership in Thailand’s food service industry and for the position as a leading food business operator that is popular and trusted by customers, partners and other stakeholders”, he said.

MR PONGSAK PHRUKPAISAL, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF KASIKORN SECURITIES PCL, as Financial Adviser and Lead Underwriter, added that the Company is a leading food service provider in Thailand and a pioneer of Japanese restaurants in the country. The Company has introduced “ZEN” as well as other brands and launched new restaurants continuously to tap consumption demand from all customer segments, including those with lower, median and upper purchasing power. To ensure long-term growth through expansion of its customer base, it also undertakes such connected businesses as development of ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat food products, he said.

As its businesses are about food, a basic human need, the Company benefits from the overall economic growth and the growth in restaurant industry that is achieved in line with the rising income of the population and the growing urbanization. Between 2012 and 2017, the restaurant industry grew at an annualized rate of approximately 4.7%. Euromonitor International estimates that the industry’s total market value, which stood at approximately THB 0.84 trillion in 2017, will rise to more than THB 1.05 trillion in 2022.