Durban - Something Fishy has resorted to chicken and salads to boost its operations after 25 years of struggling to attract customers with just seafood.
Salim Hajee, the group's franchising manager, said all new stores would offer more than just fish. He said the group had rebranded and teamed up with Good Things to come up with a turnaround strategy.
"It is difficult to sell fish because people do not eat it everyday, unlike chicken and beef. We are repositioning ourselves as the Good Things group and have added a chicken side and healthier meals with salads instead of just rice and chips to all our new stores," said Hajee.
The group was already seeing some positive returns because of the rebranding.
"When we were selling fish only, we would see customers once or twice a week. But now people are coming in three to four times a week not necessarily to buy fish. There is a lot of growth in the market for our new products," said Hajee.
Three of the group's stores, including the one in Pinetown, had closed this year for various reasons, mainly disputes on rentals.
Four shops have been opened this year and there are now 107 Something Fishy outlets countrywide. Hajee said seven more were in the pipeline, with some earmarked for townships.
"We are in the process of signing up in Gugulethu in Cape Town. We are also looking at Maponya Mall in Soweto and Alexandra. We have also secured a site and a franchisee in Umtata in the Eastern Cape," said Hajee.
Meanwhile, FishAways, which is Something Fishy's rival, has reported growth in its branch network. Kevin Hedderwick, chief operating officer at Famous Brands, owners of FishAways, said retail store growth in the quarter to June was 38.4 percent compared with last year.
Hedderwick said they now had 77 stores and were aiming for 100 by the financial year-end.