Money

Restaurateur orders up sizzling future

By Shen Jingting (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-05-19 10:26

Zhang Wende, chairman of Mt Hannashan Group,says the group is on track for fast expansion.   ZOU HONG/ CHINA DAILY

Korean BBQ chain founder plans scores of new eateries

Zhang Wende, president of Mt Hannashan Group, aims to scale a summit, of sorts: to make his company the top Korean restaurant operator across China.

The 36-year-old executive plans to quicken the pace of the company's expansion by opening 25 new barbecue restaurants nationwide this year, with another 30 to 40 outlets expected the following year.

Hannashan now operates 30 restaurants in Beijing and 25 stores in other cities, including Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenyang and Shenzhen.

"We want to stride forward, leaving our competitors far behind," Zhang told METRO, while sitting in a glittering hall of his company's Hannashan International Club, a luxury retreat.

He did not deny the group has entered into a phase which in Chinese is roughly translated to mean "ride a horse to claim land".

"The time left for us for a rapid development is pressed, maybe a mere two or three years," Zhang said.  

Many restaurateurs take a wait-and-see approach in opening new ventures. Zhang, however, is not that patient.

"It's like catching a train instead of standing still," he said. "If you feel you are well-prepared, the time is already too late because you have already missed the train."

He hopes to maintain a 30 percent sales growth each year for Hannashan Group, regardless of the growing pains from the rapid expansion.

"I don't mind chaos. I may put up with disorder for a moment," Zhang said in an unhurried tone.

"But later, I will take time and bring good management to my stores. To grab the market in first- and second-tier cities is the most important thing right now."

Cooperating with big shopping malls is a vital step for the company, Zhang said, citing the prime location of such centers and their well-off clientele.

Hannashan has given up on the traditional method of opening single streetside stores in favor of such malls as Joy City, operated by Cofco Property Group Ltd, and Wanda Plaza, which is run by Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co.

A dozen new Hannashans will be added to Wanda properties alone in coming months.

Zhang also revealed many institutional investors have contacted him to inquire about a public listing of shares in his company. That could occur, but not before two or three years.

"Receiving private equity is like getting married to it," he said.

"At first, we see each other as being very pretty, but afterward, conflicts may emerge. What if we have fights at home? This would certainly hurt the company's development."

In 2001, Zhang spent all his savings and even borrowed from friends to collect 4 million yuan to establish his first Korean barbecue restaurant near the North Third Ring Road.

Traditional Korean dishes, including roasted meat, thick soya bean soup and bibimbap starred, but their flavors were all changed a little to suit local palates.

The business turned out to be extremely successful, as clients queued in long lines, even when the SARS epidemic raged in 2003.

The company also bought a two-hectare parcel in the Shunyi district for a distribution center.

The Zhang family's affinity for Korean cuisine set it all in motion.

Born in Jiaohe, Jilin province, in 1973, Zhang was a frequent visitor to Beijing as a child. His family eventually moved to the capital and in the 1980s opened a small Korean restaurant in Fengtai district.

"My parents worked really hard," he recalled. "Their sweat paid off as many clients went to that small restaurant."

Those fond memories pushed Zhang to follow in the family business.

In 1993 he entered Minzu University of China in Beijing, majoring in economics, but dropped out one year later.

He found it difficult to focus on studies.

"I kept thinking of how to make money," he said.

"First, I worked as a tourist guide. Afterward I worked as a Korean-restaurant owner."

He opened a small Korean restaurant with only nine tables near Minzu University in 1995.

He earned more than 150,000 yuan the first year, giving him an appetite to create a restaurant empire.