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KFC will serve up its 11 herbs and spices to the Valley from next week.
“If all goes well, the new store will be open next Tuesday,” KFC facilities manager Michael Anderson said.
“But definitely next week at any rate.”
The opening is coming sooner than rumoured—an October date was posed in early August when the service centre first opened its doors to customers.
Over 50 locals have been hired to operate the new store at the Nambucca Heads service centre, according to restaurant manager Stacey McCarthy.
Outside the store it doesn’t look like much is going on, but inside there is a mad frenzy as shopfitters, technicians, and management all work towards giving the people what they want: fried chicken.
Even the opening of a brand new 24/7 MacDonalds yesterday didn’t sate the hungry masses.
The entire Maccas team have moved four kilometres up the road after the Plaza shopfront closed its doors for the last time on Sunday.
Macdonalds people performance manager Jesse Brislane said this was one of the most successful openings of a store she’d ever seen.
She said they’d been hiring new staff continuously since hearing about the move in order to cope with the increased service hours and customer demand that the new location brings.
Restaurant manager Josh Hillier said assisting staff had come down from Coffs Harbour to help with the opening.
There were a few technical glitches overnight which forced the store to close temporarily between 3-6am.
But Jesse is confident that the computer and electrical gremlins are all sorted and that they should be operating 24/7 from now on—not even closing for Christmas day.
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On its first day of trade the store pulled in around $200 less than it would have at the Plaza restaurant, but Jesse believes that it will pick up very quickly once word of the opening spreads.
The staff are loving their shiny new store which also features a 24 hour McCafe, but are still getting used to being inside a food court.
”We’re still getting used to having to keep noise levels down. In the other store, we could make more noise because we were the only ones there. Now we have to consider everyone else,” Jesse said.
Both stores have drive-thrus and store-specific in-house seating.
The franchise opportunity at the service centre was a no-brainer for MacDonalds who saw the increased potential for revenue at a location which can cater non-stop to holiday makers with caravans, truckies and locals.
The store relocation also circumvents the uncertainty over revenue once the bypass opens.
Management wasn’t able to comment on the plans for the MacDonalds-owned store at the Plaza which has been fenced off, and lettering stripped from its roof.
But Josh said it would be safe to presume that MacDonalds won’t be operating a restaurant there anymore.