BARELY six months after launching its first outlet at New York City's Chrysler Building in January this year, Singapore's Sakae Sushi opened a second outlet in the same city last month.
As its founder Douglas Foo told my paper recently, the chain wants to be the McDonald's or Starbucks of sushi.
'When you think of burgers, you think of McDonald's. Mention coffee and you think of Starbucks. When people say sushi, we want them to think of Sakae,' said Mr Foo, chief executive of Apex-Pal International, which owns Sakae Sushi and other food-and-beverage brands such as Hibiki and Uma Uma Men.
Sakae's US outlets signify the company's ambition to grow its business beyond Singapore and the region to be a global brand. With 36 Sakae Sushi outlets in Singapore and a total turnover of $83.8 million last year, the home-grown brand has leapfrogged its competitors since its debut at OUB Centre in 1997.
It has expanded aggressively overseas, with 91 restaurants spanning 12 cities in seven countries, including Beijing and Jakarta.
Now, Sakae is setting its sights on the US.
There were, however, challenges, such as having no Asian brand leaders in the US whose business operations it could emulate.
Sakae hopes to set the pace and become a notable Asian name there.
Said Mr Foo: 'To be a truly global brand, businesses need to have a presence in the US first.
'Look at the major global brands, such as McDonald's, Starbucks and Pizza Hut. They are all American companies and they are found throughout Asia too.'
Plans to open another five to 10 Sakae outlets in New York are in the pipeline. From there, Sakae hopes to move into other American cities.
As Mr Foo put it: 'Sakae is a small, small enterprise with a big, big dream.'
Are there any differences in the restaurants set up in New York?
The hardware is the same. The layout, welcoming ambience and facilities, such as the conveyor belt, hot-water tap and interactive menu at the tables, are also in the US outlets.
The Sakae brand is about providing value for money, so we have kept prices affordable. In the US, prices start from US$1.90 (S$2.57) and they go up to US$6.90.
How does Sakae appeal to local tastebuds in different markets?
About 30 per cent of our menu is customised to suit local tastes.
Before opening in a new market, we study the locals' likes and dislikes, their dining habits and so on. The menu is then customised accordingly.
For instance, we have a breakfast menu in New York. And since Americans like to have breakfast on the go, we offer options like green-tea yoghurt, yakiniku (beef) muffins and salad wraps.
Is the sushi business in Singapore getting saturated?
There is still room for growth. Obviously, the market is more crowded, compared to when Sakae first started in 1997, but pockets of opportunity are still available.
We will be opening new outlets in the western part of Singapore because our presence there is not as strong, compared to other areas.
So you can say we're trying to be like SingTel, which has stores in almost all heartland neighbourhoods.
How often do you eat at Sakae?
As often as I can. There are about 200 varieties available, so I won't get sick of the food. Like many Singaporeans, my favourite items are salmon sushi and salmon sashimi.
That probably explains why Sakae uses 45 tonnes of salmon a month (equal to about 4,500 10kg bags of rice) for our Singapore outlets alone.
