Lotteria, one of Asia’s best-known burger chains, is finally landing in Singapore. The brand will open its first city-state outlet at Jewel Changi Airport on 11 February 2026, brought in by local F&B operator Katrina Group under a franchise agreement with Lotte GRS. It is a textbook cross-border franchise play into one of Southeast Asia’s most competitive food markets.
The partnership was sealed in August 2025, when Katrina Group announced it had signed with Lotte GRS to bring Lotteria into Singapore. The Jewel Changi store is only the opening move: the operator has flagged plans for multiple outlets across the country.
Katrina Group chief executive and founder Alan Goh framed the appeal in commercial terms.
“we are confident that Lotteria will resonate with Singaporeans”
This is not the group’s first Korean import. It already runs DAILY BEER, built around the Chimaek (fried chicken and beer) pairing, plus the family-friendly spin-off DAILY CHICKEN — alongside homegrown brands such as Bali Thai, Streats, and So Pho.
Most diners assume Lotteria is purely South Korean. In fact, the chain opened its first restaurant in Tokyo, Japan in 1972, before establishing itself in South Korea in 1979. The name fuses parent company Lotte with “cafeteria.” Today it runs more than 1,600 stores across seven countries, including outlets in Indonesia, Vietnam, and China — making Singapore a natural next step in its regional map.
Lotteria’s arrival fits a broader pattern VF tracks closely: the steady migration of Korean F&B brands into ASEAN on the back of K-culture demand. From fried chicken to bakery and coffee, Korean concepts travel well because they carry built-in brand recognition among younger Asian consumers and slot neatly into the region’s mall and transit-hub real estate.
For master-franchise candidates and multi-unit operators in Southeast Asia, the Katrina–Lotteria tie-up is a model worth studying. A credible local partner with an existing F&B platform de-risks entry for the franchisor and accelerates rollout for the operator — the two-sided logic at the heart of every durable cross-border deal. Placing the flagship inside Jewel Changi Airport, a high-footfall tourist and transit magnet, also signals a premium positioning rather than a price-led one. Expect more Korean quick-service brands to chase Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam next, ideally through operators who already understand local licensing, labour, and landlord dynamics.
More cross-border F&B coverage: a Vietnamese cafe expanding into India, Little Caesars in Malaysia, and our pillar on restaurant franchises in Asia.
