Entrepreneur Dhiraj Kundamal explains the decision to introduce the chain’s sweet & savoury pretzels to the city and beyond
It is not every day that a piece of America comes to Hong Kong in the form of something savoury and sweet. Auntie Anne’s made a splash in the local food scene in mid-June when news broke on the opening of their entrance into Hong Kong with a new store in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Hong Kong is familiar with the flavours of Americana, be that Outback Steakhouse, The Cheesecake Factory, Cinnabon’s, Subway, or Ruby Tuesday. In the 2020s, the world has seemingly gone pretzel-crazy with Auntie Anne’s capturing such mania.
“It is exciting to bring brands to Hong Kong at this time and I think Hong Kong needs it more than ever now,” Dhiraj Kundamal explains in an interview with Foodie. The Indian Hong Konger is the CEO of the chain’s Hong Kong franchise, brought to the city by Super Fab Foods. “Being a Hong Konger born and raised here, we all love our hometown. We should try and give back to the economy, to rebuild Hong Kong.”
The growth of Auntie Anne’s in Hong Kong begins with feeding the city with the same flavours celebrated globally in the chain, Dhiraj says. Since 1988, the American fast food chain has opened more than 2,000 stores in 23 countries. In the last ten years, their pretzels have gripped Asia. “We have 200 stores in South Korea, 200 in Thailand, 100 in the Philippines, 40 in Indonesia, 20 in Malaysia, five in Taiwan, and now one in Hong Kong.”
“The move to Hong Kong offers the opportunity for Hong Kongers to experience fresh baked pretzels, which very few people are doing the right way in the city. This is a good product to bring to Hong Kong.” This is Dhiraj’s first foray in the F&B industry and franchising, and a big one for that matter.
Economically, Auntie Anne’s fits into Hong Kong well. Where the fine-dining space is suffering and neighbourhood restaurants are hit with waning visits, the average ticket order at the Tsim Sha Tsui store is under HKD100, befitting an impulse buy when local spending has become recently more reserved. “We have had lines every day since we opened,” Dhiraj notes.
Taking after Hong Kong’s love for travel abroad, Dhiraj is delighted to serve the same taste, flavours, image, and brand that Hong Kongers can expect in Tsim Sha Tsui as they would at Auntie Anne’s in New York, Los Angeles, London, Taipei, and Seoul.
But Auntie Anne’s in Hong Kong is not just about their signature freshly baked pretzels. “We offer pretzel sticks and pretzel dogs, we are known for almond crunch and cinnamon sugar toppings, and our lemonade drinks.” Catering to the local market, the brand will introduce twists like Hong Kong egg tart pretzels and matcha and seaweed flavours.
Dhiraj finds Auntie Anne’s penetration into the local market as a real “east meets west” connection. A penchant with queueing and the social media buzz of new food in town has enthralled Hong Kongers with a taste of America in the city. Notable fans of the brand can expect the same meme-powered branding strategy of Auntie Anne’s in North America and that has rendered the chain a hit with Gen Z diners.
Auntie Anne’s Hong Kong are not stopping at just one location. The plan, Dhiraj divulges, is to open their second location on Hong Kong Island in Q1 2025 and another in Kowloon shortly thereafter. “The objective right now is to really immerse ourselves in the business, to understand it, and to be able to scale organically because Hong Kong does have its fair share of challenges.”
“Because Auntie Anne’s, traditionally, is a mall-based brand, an impulse buy, we are building that into our branding. The long term strategy for Hong Kong is to team up with developers and the big malls to have Auntie Anne’s as a fixture in the malls.” The attack plan is to grow to Macau and the Greater Bay Area for expansion.
Head down to Auntie Anne’s in Tsim Sha Tsui today to try their delectable pretzels and drinks.
