US fast-food restaurant chain Five Guys is to launch its first store in South Korea in Gangnam this June with 15 locations set to open in the country during the next five years.
“Since it is the first brand to be launched, we chose the area around Gangnam Station, which has the highest daily floating population in Korea,” said a spokesperson from Hanwha Solutions, the operator of Five Guys in South Korea.
The company said the store would span 618sqm over two storeys with a capacity of 150 seats. The store has started hiring employees and key personnel will be trained in Hong Kong for six weeks before serving at the South Korea branch.
Hanwha Solutions inked an initial agreement with the Virginia-based burger chain last October. The deal is the first business deal by Kim Dong-seon, the third and youngest son of South Korea’s seventh-largest conglomerate head Kim Seung-youn.
Founded in 1985, Five Guys has about 1800 stores in 23 countries. South Korea marks the brand’s fifth market in Asia after Hong Kong, Singapore, China and Malaysia.
The US burger chain also plans to open its first store in Macau this year at The Venetian Macao under the partnership with local operator Foward Fashion.
