Ootoya to Launch "Teishoku" Restaurant in Vietnam

Tokyo, Aug. 1 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Ootoya Holdings Co. <2705> plans to launch a "teishoku" set meal restaurant in Vietnam in fiscal 2018 at the earliest as part of efforts to expand its overseas operations amid the shrinking domestic market due to the falling population, its president, Kenichi Kubota, said Tuesday. The move comes as the company sees business opportunities in Vietnam, where the income level has risen remarkably due to its rapid economic growth. The company will put emphasis on operations in Asia, Kubota said in an interview with Jiji Press. Malaysia is a promising market as well, he said. Currently, Ootoya has a total of 93 directly run and franchised restaurants in eight foreign countries and regions. In Vietnam, it operates a franchised outlet that mainly serves yakitori skewered chicken in Ho Chi Minh City. "Our mission is to spread Japanese home cuisine to the world," Kubota said. END