History
Our Company was incorporated in Singapore on 6 March 2003 as an investment holding public company.
Our principal subsidiary, BreadTalk Pte Ltd, is a private limited company incorporated in Singapore under the Companies Act on 24 April 2000. It was founded by our Chairman, Dr. George Quek and our Deputy Chairman, Katherine Lee.
Our Chairman, Dr. George Quek, first conceptualised "BreadTalk" in April 2000 when he saw an opportunity for starting a bakery selling freshly baked breads and buns which are visually creative and attractive.
Our first BreadTalk retail outlet commenced business on 1 July 2000 at Parco Bugis Junction. We opened our second retail outlet within five months of our first retail outlet in December 2000 at Novena Square. Our first retail outlet situated in the HDB heartlands was also opened in December 2000 at Junction 8 Shopping Centre. In 2001, we expanded our operations by opening another five retail outlets.
When we first commenced operations, the whole baking process, from the preparation of the dough to the final topping of the bakery items, was done at each individual retail outlet.
As our operations continued to grow, and in preparation for our franchising plans, we set up our central kitchen and shifted our corporate headquarters to our present premises at KA FoodLink, Kampong Ampat in September 2001. To expand our production capacity, we acquired more space, machinery and equipment in 2002. The expansion of our central kitchen was completed by November 2002.
Over the last two years, we have introduced many new varieties of breads, buns, cakes and pastries and we presently have launched more than 100 bakery items.
Milestones
- 2000
- - First BreadTalk outlet opens at Bugis Junction, Singapore
- - Launches its signature Flosss bun - spiralling long queues
- - George Quek targets to open 10 BreadTalk outlets in 3 years
- 2001
- - Receives more than 1000 international franchise enquries for BreadTalk
- 2002
- - BreadTalk receives the SPBA Most Promising Brand Award and voted by consumers as Most Popular Brand
- - George Quek wins the Entrepreneur of the Year Award (ASME and the Rotary Club)
- - BreadTalk is ranked No.1 in the Enterprise 50 Startup Award (Accenture and The Business Times)
- - BreadTalk fast expands to 20 outlets in Singapore
- 2003
- - BreadTalk Group Limited is listed on Sesdaq*, on the Singapore Exchange
- - First overseas outlet opens in Jakarta, Indonesia
- - Sets up PRC’s Headquarters and opens first outlet in Shanghai
- - BreadTalk receives the SPBA Distinctive Brand Award
- 2004
- - BreadTalk is a winner in the Design for Asia Award, Hong Kong Design Centre
- - BreadTalk receives the SPBA Silver Award
- - BreadTalk opens inaugural store in Philippines
- - Brings in Din Tai Fung - Ranked one of The World’s Top Ten Best Restaurants by The New York Times and creates a craze for xiao long bao with 2-hour queues
- 2005
- - Launches Food Republic Wisma Atria, Singapore - the first thematic Food Atrium with 1960s street hawker fare
- - Launches the first Toast Box with its signature Nanyang kopi and thick toast
- - Wins the Gold Award and the CitiBusiness Regional Brand Award, SPBA, for brand success in foreign territories
- 2006
- - Receives the Five Star Diamond Brand and Diamond Awards awarded by the World Brand Laboratory in Shanghai, PRC
- - George Quek wins the Emerging Entrepreneur Category of the Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2006, organised by The Business Times by Ernst and Young
- 2007
- - BreadTalk celebrates its 100th store worldwide opening in Shanghai, PRC
- - First Food Republic opens in Kuala Lumpur’s Pavilion Shopping Centre, Malaysia
- 2008
- - Launches brand new design concept store at CityLink Mall - new design to be rolled out internationally
- - BreadTalk opens inaugural stores in both Korea and Oman
- - Launches The Icing Room for young adults to engage in Design-It-Yourself cakes
- - Food Republic is the Overall Winner of Promising Brands in SPBA
- 2009
- - BreadTalk inks a 12-country Middle East Master Franchise agreement with Bahraini partner, Pan Arabian Gourmet
- - BreadTalk puts Singapore on the world retail map as it emerges as finalist in the Emerging Retailer of the Year Category at the World Retail Awards, Spain
- - BreadTalk is listed by Brand Finance, an international independent asset valuation company as one of the Top 100 brands in Singapore
- - BreadTalk Group Limited transfer of listing to the SGX Mainboard (11 June 2009)
- - Launches Bread Society - a premium bakery at ION Orchard showcasing Euro and rustic bakery recipes
- - Partners with Japanese Sanpou Group to launch RamenPlay
- - Obtains Franchise for premium Californian brand - Carl’s Jr. to operate in PRC
- - Toast Box is Overall Winner of Promising Brands in SPBA
- 2010
- - Celebrates 10 years of innovation with 7 brands, 448 outlets spanning 13 Countries in Asia and the Middle East
- 2011
- - International Headquarters Groundbreaking Ceremony.
