The owners of the McDonald’s fast food franchise in Romania plan to accelerate the expansion pace and open seven new restaurants and five new McCafe coffee shops this year, according to Daniel Boaje, the general manager of Premier Restaurants Romania, the company that owns the local McDonald’s network.

The company invested EUR 10 million in developing its local operations last year and plans to increase the sum this year, local News.ro reported. Besides opening new units, the company will also continue the remodeling process of its existing restaurants and the digitization process that allows an easier interaction with the customers. Its main goal is to bring more clients to the McDonald’s restaurants and cafes this year, after serving 73 million customers in 2017, Boaje added.

Premier Restaurants Romania has 71 restaurants in 21 cities and some 4,500 employees in Romania. It reached a turnover of over EUR 130 million in 2016. The results for 2017 haven’t been made public yet.

The company is part of Maltese group Hili Ventures, which holds the McDonald’s franchise in Romania, Greece, Malta and the Baltics.

editor@romania-insider.com