A home-grown, Mexican favourite is expanding further in Japan and Singapore. Find out which one.

Guzman y Gomez (GYG) has been so successful in its Asian stores across Japan and Singapore, more outlets are set to open in both countries this year.

Four new taquerias have already opened and six are planned, including one in the Disney Tokyo entertainment precinct.

“It’s very high traffic, and we have very good partners,” CEO Mark Hawthorne told FranchiseBusiness.

The Mexcian fast food chain prefers to operate overseas via a master franchise model rather than joint ventures.

GYG set up its first Singapore-based taqueria (restaurant specialising in tacos) in 2014 eight years after launching its first restaurant in Sydney. It now has 74 outlets across Australia.

The company aims to be opening about 20 taquerias each year.

The target market is 18-35 year olds who form 60 percent of the customer base.

“What excites me about GYG is capturing the Millennial market, the holy grail of business,” said Hawthorne. “Latin American food is a huge growth category.”

Find out more about franchises in the Mexican fast food sector.