Cambodia’s first KFC opened exactly one month ago. The bright red restaurant is easily found on Monivong Boulevard, a busy street that runs through the centre of Phnom Penh. It’s not exactly the Champs Élysées, and it will be a long time before Gucci rolls into town (as it did in Saigon last summer).
But the arrival of the famous Colonel amid the dust and the mopeds is a sure sign that multinationals see Cambodia as a market for the future.
The man in charge is Benjamin Jerome, a 33-year old Malaysian who has worked for KFC for all of his career to date, from restaurant manager in Sabah to general manager in Cambodia, where he has spent the last six months plotting KFC’s expansion strategy.
When he enters the restaurant, Jerome is quietly courteous and polite, as one might expect of someone who has spent nine years in the service industry. But as the photo shoot drags on and his phone keeps ringing, there is a sense that he would rather be left to get on with his job.
“People have been waiting for KFC to come to town for a long time,” he says (rumours of KFC opening here began two years ago). “Initially, it was foreigners who wanted us here. Then locals were talking about us too, especially Cambodians who have returned home in the years after the war.”
The plan is to open between four and six outlets this year, then two more every year thereafter. Hardly a Starbuck’s-like assault, but a toe-in-the-water approach is needed, Jerome explains: “This is not only the first KFC in Cambodia. It is the first Western fast food restaurant in Cambodia. Although we have some local competition, there’s a danger we would cannibalise our business if we opened too many outlets too quickly.” Besides, he notes, this is a country in which everything is paid for with cash, and deals are sealed with a handshake. It pays to be cautious.
KFC is up against the local fast food chains Lucky Burger, BBWorld and Big Burger, none of which have a big presence in the capital, but have a loyal following. But genuine local competition is not Jerome’s biggest worry. The logo of Big Burger bears an uncanny resemblance to the logo of another US fast food icon, Burger King, and it’s not unlikely that copycat KFCs will start appearing.
Hence KFC’s marketing strategy. “We will introduce the brand as: ‘The taste nobody can copy,’” says Jerome. Chicken will be the focus of the first advertising burst, which breaks this month, and burgers later once the brand has gained enough momentum to take on the local burger chains.
Jerome estimates he will have a budget of US$1 million to spend on marketing in KFC’s first year (instantly making it one of the Kingdom’s biggest advertisers). This could increase, but only if sales are strong and the first restaurant becomes profitable, which he thinks is possible by April next year.
Beyond unreplicable taste and superior service, Jerome says he wants KFC to be known as a dining experience for the masses.
Judging by the clientelle of well-heeled young locals, Westerners and an enormous gold Lexus parked outside, this may be ambitious. At a bit over US$2 for a regular chicken meal, KFC isn’t much pricier than its rivals but, of course, is out of reach for the five million Cambodians who live on less than a dollar a day.
Giving the brand a local flavour will be key to success, says Jerome. Rice is on the menu, although he admits that serving only flavoured rice was an early mistake (Cambodians tend to eat plain rice with every meal). Staff dressed in tradtional costume for Khymer new year this month will also help ease KFC into the local dining scene.
Jerome has had pleny of adapting to do himself. “I am very strict with my staff, but I am mindful of local sensitivities. I am firm, because I have to be. But I do not rule with an iron fist. I try to be diplomatic and treat my people as partners.”
Getting staff motivated was a big worry initially, he says, “but my people have believed in the dream I am selling to them, and the dream KFC is selling to Cambodia.”
Though KFC to the core, Jerome admits there are things Cambodia needs more than finger lickin’ good chicken. Which is why he wants the brand to be known as more than a seller of crispy strips and Zinger burgers, as a supporter of local causes.
He concludes: “I see KFC becoming a leader, not just in business, but in the community.”
Benjamin Jerome’s CV
2008 General manager, KFC Cambodia
2006 Operations manager, KFC Sabah and Brunei
2005 Area manager, KFC Sabah and Brunei
2003 Marketing and training officer, KFC Brunei
1999 Restaurant manager, KFC Sabah
