Wow! Momo is a company backed by Tiger Global. By December 2022, Wow Momo Foods plans to open over 50 new locations for its newly launched fried and grilled chicken brand Wow! Chicken. After Wow! China and Wow! Momo, this will be the company’s third brand in this series.
According to Sagar Daryani, CEO and co-founder of Wow! Momo Foods Pvt Ltd, the brand selling fried chicken, grilled chicken, burgers, shammi kebabs, and biryani rice bowls is set to fill the gap in the market occupied by KFC and Nandos for a homegrown chain.
Wow! Chicken opened its first location on January 26 in Kolkata, with plans to open over 50 locations across the country for a total investment of 35-40 crore. Malls, food courts, and high streets will be home to a mix of small and large scale retailers.
“There was a cuisine gap in the chicken market—you have a brand like KFC which has come from abroad to India and is really thriving. But there’s been no competition that they face locally,” Daryani told media.
Daryani stated the QSR space is quite “attractive” at present.
Every food company or every food tech company is trying to own the maximum share of stomach with an expansion in the eating out and ordering in market, he added.
Wow! Momo Foods has approximately 425 locations in 19 different cities. Tree Line Investment Management led a $15 million fundraising round for the dining services company last year. The food company was valued at approximately Rs. 1,225 crore as a result of the investment. By the conclusion of the current calendar year, the company will have added over 335 outlets across all formats.
Daryani remarked Wow! Momo is looking to expand beyond momos and Chinese food by acquiring a company. Last year, the food services industry made its first step into the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) space with ready-to-eat momos.
The company is in talks with a couple food service companies about a potential acquisition.
Post-covid, organised fast food chains benefited from their excellent online ordering skills and a general consumer preference for known and large brands, which enabled them survive intermittent lockdowns. According to a business survey conducted by the Retailers’ Association of India, QSR chains grew by 16 percent year over year in December.
