Many Small Independent Players Are Going Global

©iStock/Hakinmhan

It's not just the big restaurant chains (e.g., Tim Hortons, Freshii and Smoke's Poutinerie) going global, for many small independent players are making the jump, too. One such player is Kinka Family, which owns restaurant brands such as Kinka Izakaya and Kinton Ramen, and now has locations in Japan and South Korea.

Kinka's Japan location is a hybrid of the group's Kinka Izakaya banner and its Toronto sushi restaurant JaBistro, according to Ms. Yu [director of marketing and communications for Toronto-based Kinka Family]. The company has tweaked its international branding and menus to stand out in the Asian markets and bring some Canadian-inflected specialties.

Read more about how alternative growth -- international expansion -- can pay off big time for small players.