y’s Mexican fare. “The US has different challenges to Australia,” Marks told Inside Retail.  Australians didn’t know much about Mexican cuisine when the company started out, but the US isn’t short of Mexican food. The point of differentiation, he said, is GYG’s food, energy, and guest experience. It also helps that the company offers breakfast, drive-thru and in-app ordering, which Marks said makes the company stand out in a crowded marketplace.  Don’t emphasise Australia “We’re proud of our Aussie heritage, but it doesn’t form a large part of our marketing in the US,” Marks said.  GYG was founded because of a perception that Mexican flavours and food was lacking in Australia, but the CEO believes the formula can be recreated anywhere in the world due to the company’s energy and appeal. “The Aussie connection is always there because our customers love our success story and we’re grateful for that support,” he said. Having said that, Marks said he had a few laughs at the Schaumburg opening with US customers who humorously wondered why crocodile tacos were not on the menu.  “They knew we were authentic Mexican from the first bite,” he said.  Covid threw a spanner in the works In 2021, GYG said it would have around four US sites up and running, but things haven’t worked out that way, mainly thanks to Covid. A week after its first location opened in Naperville, Illinois, in 2020, the spicy cough hit, which Marks said, “wasn’t the greatest timing.”  But as other rival restaurants faltered, the Naperville site went from strength to strength on the back of its double lane drive-thru, as well as take-out, delivery, and app-based pickup options.  Covid also put a dampener on new construction, and so GYG put its expansion on hold. Three new restaurants were due to open in FY21, but the organisation needed to wait until things returned to relative normality before it could resume its growth plans. “Crystal Lake and Buffalo Grove [in Illinois] are up next and they’re great locations with great energy,” Marks said. “We are very intentional with where we build, and we only look for AAA+ sites able to sustain our growth plans for decades to come.” He also said it’s important to educate US consumers that fast food doesn’t mean bad food and said American customers didn’t know what good fast food was until GYG came along.  “When our US guests see the value of our food and the quality of ingredients served at speed, they really start to get what we’re about.” The menu stays the same When the company was founded in Australia, it flew in Mexican chefs to ensure its menu was an authentic representation of Mexican food – but it took time to educate Aussies on what authenticity tasted like.  Similarly, the menu hasn’t been changed much for the US expansion, with Marks observing that American customers aren’t much different from their Australian counterparts.  Where there are variations, those changes are minor and include flame-grilled Angus beef and the ever-popular pinto bean. GYG also adds lettuce to bowls and burritos and offers all-you-can-drink soft drink refills.  “If anything, Americans are amplifying what Aussies already love,” he said, noting the chipotle fries are as big a hit in the US market as they are at home.  On the domestic front, GYG plans to open 30 new Australian stores in FY23, and all expansion, both at home and abroad, is funded through cashflow.  “Our diligent and talented real estate team, led by George Mandilis, does a fantastic job finding AAA+ sites where they know GYG will succeed,” Marks said. “In FY23 we have already opened nine new Australian stores and we have 21 more to go.”