The third round of private equity placement will be through by Dec 2000, company chief executive officer and co-founder Antoine Bakhache told The Financial Express.

In the first phase of expansion, Pizza Corner is adding 10 restaurants in Delhi over the next 12 months with a capital investment of Rs 15 crore.

Pizza Corner currently has 25 restaurants, which will go up to over 40 by this year end. Apart from Delhi, the company is also looking at setting up restaurants in Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad. Out of the proposed investment of Rs 10 crore by the year end, the company has already invested close to Rs 5 crore.

Pizza Corner India (P) Ltd was incorporated in August 1996 and is owned by Global Investment Partners, a venture capital enterprise. In the second tranche of its funding, the company placed equity with ICICI venture at Rs 205 per share (face value Rs 100). ICICI venture currently holds close to 33 per cent of the Rs 23 crore equity. Over the past four years, the company has grown to grab a 22 per market share of the Rs 100-crore pizza market.

Dominos is the leader with a market share of around 32 per cent.

"We are an Indian brand for the world. We aim to be the largest pizza chain in the country, but our bigger goal is to be the best-managed pizza chain in the world and continue to `Wow' every guest," Bakhache said.

Pizza Corner's restaurants across the country are a mix of dine-in as well as free delivery outlets. For instance, five out of the eight restaurants in Delhi are free delivery outlets, said Bakhache. Out of the total turnover of around Rs 22 crore, free delivery contributed close to 45 per cent of the revenues. The turnover during the current year is expected to be around Rs 27 crore.

"Although Pizza Corner is in cash losses, it is expected to break even in the current year with the setting up of the 27th restaurant," company corporate vice-president Sumir Anand said.