Papa John's puts India on priority list with vegetarian fare, executives say

Papa John's International is placing India among its priority markets globally and tailoring its offerings to local tastes with its maiden majority-vegetarian menu, executives said, in a move the US pizza chain expects will fuel long-term growth. The world's third-largest pizza delivery company, which exited India in 2017 citing underperformance, has relaunched with four stores in Bengaluru, it said on Friday, and plans to open 650 stores nationwide over the next decade. The pizza chain's return comes at a time when executives and analysts tip discretionary spending in India to recover on the back the recent tax cuts, after several quarters of sluggish demand across the fast-food sector. "India is one of our priority markets," CFO Ravi Thanawala told Reuters....