After making floss buns a hit in the region, BreadTalk will be trying its hand at selling burgers next.

Undeterred by the bleak times, the company will be opening the first ever Carl's Junior outlet in China in July.

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And it plans to open 100 more Carl's Junior outlets throughout the country in the next eight years.

It is franchising the American burger brand in China. It is not behind the brand in Singapore.

It is also planning to expand its chain of BreadTalk bakeries, especially in China and the Middle East, where its curry buns are selling like hot cakes.

It will open 100 more bakeries by the end of this year.

Said chief executive George Quek, 52: 'Even with the downturn, our customers are still buying. So far, our revenue and profits this year have been fairly stable.'

The BreadTalk Group, which currently owns 250 bakeries and Toastbox outlets, also owns 31 food courts and six restaurants in 13 countries.

In Singapore alone, it will be opening three more bakeries before the end of this year, bringing the total here to 28.

Mr Quek said that although many companies are being cautious and putting on hold expansion plans, many new shopping malls are coming up in countries such as China, Indonesia and Thailand.

However, because of the worldwide downturn, securing a good retail location is much cheaper.

It is also easier and less costly to hire capable staff.

'Even construction and food costs have come down. If we need to take a loan, the banks' interest rates are low,' he said.

'This is clearly the best time for us to move forward and expand.'

Added Mr Quek: 'There is a lot of potential to the business. Hopefully, we can one day bring our business to Europe, the United States and Canada.'

Nur Dianah Suhaimi

This article was first published in The Straits Times.