Cheesecake Factory Goes Global

In its first international expansion, The Cheesecake Factory has inked an exclusive licensing agreement with the Alshaya group of companies to build and operate restaurants in the Middle East. The agreement with the Kuwait company covers the development of 22 restaurants over the next five years in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. It includes provisions to expand the agreement to other markets in the Middle East, and also to North Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and Turkey.

The Cheesecake Factory operates 163 full-service, casual dining restaurants throughout the United States, including 149 of its namesake restaurants, 13 Grand Lux Café units, and one RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen.