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Island Grill now has 18 stores in its portfolio, but plans to ramp up those numbers to at least 25 within four years, a project in which it will invest about US$10 million to US$14 million.
The company has a solid footing in the fast-food chicken market, having distinguished itself as a purveyor of grilled chicken amid heavy-hitting fried chicken rivals KFC and Popeyes, and a host of other fast-food chains.
“At the end of the day, chicken is Jamaican food, but you have to distinguish yourself because everybody is after the fried-chicken market,” said Island Grill’s deputy chairman and company founder, Thalia Lyn, explaining the historic reasons behind the path taken by Island Grill, formerly known as Chicken Supreme before its transition.
Island Grill’s newest store recently opened at White River, near the parish border of St Mary and St Ann.
The company picked that slot over more congested space in the fast-growing Drax Hall business and recreation district in St Ann, said Island Grill CEO Tania Waldron-Gooden.