Nando's fans will have something to celebrate after the spicy chicken chain confirmed it was looking to invest a significant amount of money in renewing its presence in the New Zealand market.
In the last year, Nando's has closed six of its restaurants citing a franchise agreement breach and sparking speculation that the chain might be leaving New Zealand for good, but Nando's New Zealand chief executive Justin Scotti said this was not the case.
"We recognise that the brand has slipped in New Zealand compared to what we're doing in the rest of the world," Scotti said.
"We have 26 restaurants in New Zealand and our intention is to grow that number in the next three to five years and next year, depending on site availability, we'd be hoping to open another three. What you'll see is a shift in the quality of the restaurants and how they look - it's a significant lift in standards."
Scotti said the company had become aware that the master franchise partner who had previously operated the New Zealand branch had failed to adequately invest in the business, with Nando's global shareholders repurchasing the franchise rights for New Zealand in May 2014.