#129 Say “Cheese”
Founded in 1978 by David Overton and with more than 200 restaurants, 2 billion US$ in revenues and about 40,000 employees, the Cheesecake Factory is one of the United States’ top restaurant chains in the casual dining category. For most of its history, the Cheesecake Factory was focused on the US market, and only started to expand internationally in 2012 with a restaurant at the Dubai Mall in the United Arab Emirates. Until 2017, a few other international locations in Canada, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Saudi Arabia were added. In May 2017, the Cheesecake Factory opened its first restaurant in Hong Kong, and it seemed that what the restaurant is best known for – large portions of comfort food – caught Chinese customers by surprise. As the Wall Street Journal reported in late 2017, diners at the Hong Kong location had troubles with the concept. Some were confused by the restaurant’s name, some were concerned about the calorie count of some dishes that exceeded a normal daily intake, others were astonished by the amount of cheese used in many menu items, and yet others were marveling at the size of the portions. It was not unusual to see parties of diners share their food. “I don’t think I can have cheese for another three months.”, a customer said, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Cheesecake Factory strives to keep their concept and menu mostly the same across the globe – from drinking glasses and decor to the 200+ item menus. In Hong Kong, they may have to stumbled on a new value proposition – pay for one meal and stretch it to many.
January 16, 2018 @ 2:05 pm
On one hand you have to admire The Cheesecake Factory for holding the line and sticking with their roots, their model, their menu, and what grew them into what they are today. On the other hand you have to wonder how long they can weather the storm as diners continue to trend towards healthier options, smaller portion sizes, lower prices, and increased convenience.
In the company’s global expansions there is an interesting opportunity to take advantage of the perceptions of the rest of the world about the excess in American culture and offer a playful atmosphere where international customers can get a slice of Americana. If I were consulting The Cheesecake Factory on their international efforts I would focus on the bar and on a shareable, decadent menu that is even more over-the-top than their domestic menu to play on foreign perceptions. Eating at The Cheesecake Factory isnt a daily option (hopefully) but it can be a fun night out for a group of friends or work colleagues looking to blow off some steam.
February 1, 2018 @ 4:30 am
I think that this Blog is great and i found it really interesting how the issues arose in China. I am not surprised that the portions are an issue in other markets as well as in China. I would be intrigued if the profit margins that come from China are positive if the public is actually utilizing the strategy of one order but its feeding many people. I do think that Cheesecake Factory is very smart with the methods on implementation into new markets as they keep all the different locations the same with materials and style and by doing this the really give themselves a simple blueprint that is easy to have success implementing into different unique markets. I would be very intrigued with how the United States is moving towards a healthier society if Cheesecake may adapt to this and make portions smaller. Would love to find out more information about the Chinese Market and if its been profitable.
February 8, 2018 @ 3:20 am
The Cheesecake Factory is a classic example of over-standardization. Even though The Cheesecake Factory has been successful with it’s extensive menu items, they are doing themselves a disservice by not being more specific to the markets they are moving into. It would be best for them to look into the cultural norms of the countries they go to so they can cater the menu to those norms.
Although The Cheesecake Factory is famous for their novel sized menu, they are being lazy with this approach and playing it safe in cost. If they were to try to meet the demands of their customers more, they could make more money in several different markets. I myself have been overwhelmed by the size and variety of options in their menu; it makes ordering a very difficult decision.
I think that if they were to take some of their $2 billion in U.S. revenues alone, they could adapt rather than over-standardize and have a larger share of foreign markets.
On another note, I highly suggest not looking at how many calories are in a slice of Cheesecake there.
February 9, 2018 @ 1:27 am
The Cheesecake Factory is a company known for their variety of dishes and desserts. Although they are successful in the United States, they struggle to please the citizens of China. The societal preferences of the Chinese public are ‘healthier’ dishes and smaller portions. The Chinese public worry more about the total number of calories they consume in each dish and how big the portions are. This indicates that the Cheesecake Factory did not assess if the items sold on their menu was acceptable for the Chinese public. This type of strategy is called standardization and this is where the Cheesecake factory ignored the desires and wants of the Chinese public. It is clear that Cheesecake Factory had the financial income to change their dishes in order to please the Chinese public, but they did not. If they were to cut their portion sizes into half, then the Chinese public would not have to buy one dinner and ‘stretch it to many people to have’. This small change will inhibit the Cheesecake factory from losing money.
In addition, the Cheesecake Factory did not change their name in order to inhibit any confusion about their restaurant/business. This is a prime example of Cheesecake factory ignoring the dynamics of the Chinese culture and the ignorant display of doing business internationally. If the Cheesecake factory does not change their menu items based on the preferences and the desires of the Chinese public, then there is a strong possibility for less revenue to be made and demand in consumption will decrease. Overall, if the Cheesecake Factory wants to succeed globally, they need to meet the demands, the wants, the political ‘correctness’ and the laws of each country.
February 10, 2018 @ 9:30 am
I agree that the portion sizes of The Cheesecake Factory menu items are impressively large. Yes, this is an example of over-standardization and represents a missed opportunity for greater success in Hong Kong. This may even have negative implications about future expansion plans to other countries in the world.
The Cheesecake Factory should not simply rely on its past successes in the United States and expect their methods to work just as well in other areas of the world, especially in countries that are more culturally distant from Western lifestyles. This case reminds me of how Oreo, on the other hand, was able to find an ideal balance between standardization and adaptation in order to succeed in China, which I think this company can learn from. Similarly, The Cheesecake Factory should invest in researching the local market to learn how to appeal to the local consumers’ preferences, which can include offering smaller portion sizes.
While “products” should be standardized as much as possible and adaptation should be kept to a minimum for practical and financial reasons, local nuances should not be completely ignored. The Cheesecake Factory risks failure by not acknowledging the unique tastes of its consumers in other countries.
February 11, 2018 @ 10:23 pm
Businesses would like to standardize as much as possible and adapt very little if they can. For the Cheesecake Factory to standardize their menu restaurants that are in other countries is something that their marketing and operations team deemed as the best option for them. As the Cheesecake Factory does have restaurants in other countries, those markets probably have the same tastes and feelings on eating comforts food that have calorie counts that are on the high side. Before they entered the Hong Kong market, their marketing team should have done the research to know whether these types of food were going to be a good match with the food culture there. To avoid the situation of people being concerned with the calorie count, the restaurant could have offered half portion plates. This would keep the menu standardized and still offer a way to address the concerns of the people. If the Cheesecake Factory does not localize in some way that addresses the peoples concerns, their customers will not be fully satisfied with the food chain and sales might not ever reach a sustainable level.
February 14, 2018 @ 2:48 pm
I am actually on the other side of this argument and think that the Cheesecake Factory has the opportunity to carve out a bit of a niche in foreign markets by sticking to the over-the-top decadence and outrageous portion sizing. By offering shareable-sized meals and a focus on the bar, the restaurant is positioned to help break the ice of a business meeting. Having a talking point distraction, like a giant slice of cheesecake, might help put all parties at ease; and a few drinks never hurt the flow of any meeting I’ve been in. While I don’t really believe this was the strategy that the Cheesecake Factory was going for, I actually think it could end up working out well for them in the end.
April 10, 2018 @ 10:41 pm
Food is not only a necessity. Food is, in the same time, a way to connect and build relationships, to show a certain status, to celebrate events (both joyful and less joyful ones), food is, most of all, an aspect which connects very much to a region, to family and for, sure, to religion. Food is sensitive with respect to traditions, symbols and superstitions.
Chinese culture puts a big emphasis on the food culture; e.g., in case of a wedding there are certain types of food which the future husband sends to the bride, having a specific symbolism, and there is food which should never be sent as a gift, as they bring bad luck, misfortune. Chinese medicinal food is acknowledged as an ancient healing method.
Chinese people have an eating culture:
– the way food is produced, prepared and served is important;
– table eating habits differ than the ones in US;
– the eating environment (design, table arrangements, etc) is different than in US.
The Cheesecake Factory is a quite popular brand; and successful on the US market.
It seems to me, that Cheesecake Factory did not really tried to put itself “in the shoes” of the Chinese consumers (customers). First of all, the cultural aspect was ignored, and it seems no significant market adaption was done; i.e., offering large portions of food is somehow contradictory to the Chinese food culture aspect. And this is confirmed by the consumers, who did not embrace this. Cheesecake applied the same concept (and did not consider a “product” adaptation) as in the US, but China has a totally different culture and a much older tradition than US. Hong Kong is a place abounding in people and places to eat. And Cheesecake Factory was, for sure, an attraction, a novelty in the beginning, who disappointed. Coming maybe with a healthier message & offer, a different eating environment arrangement could have proven to be beneficial.
Cheesecake Factory knows what it takes to be successful on their internal market, but no to the outside. Cantonese (and Hong Kong as well) is known for its seafood and rice dishes. There was, in my opinion, a pressure and a need for adaption of the service they offered for Hong Kong; especially when considering that “The most reliable Hong Kong history comes not in museums or architecture, but rather, in the form of food” (CNN – Best of Hong Kong, 2017). As food is a culture in China, there could have been a market potential for them. But cultural differences were ignored.
Name branding was confusing as well. So maybe they should have concentrated on a specific segment; e.g., consumers familiar with the name, or they should have communicated a more clear and culture adapted message. It seems no spefic segmentation was done and the goal was to reach all. And this is quite sensitive and challenging, when it comes to food, all around the globe.
Springer, K. CNN (2017). Best of Hong Kong – Explore Hong Kong’s history through its food. Retrieved from https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/hong-kong-food-history/index.html. July, 2017.
June 26, 2018 @ 7:45 am
The Cheesecake Factory is a popular brand in US, which wanted to go global. Going global often implies standardizing the brand and its offers as much as possible for practical and financial reasons as well as to have the same image all over the world. This also means minimum adaptation. Nevertheless, local differences should not be ignored. – “Global as possible, local as needed.”
The Chinese culture is a lot different from the US. Unfortunately, The Cheesecake Factory missed out to consider this cultural distance. Researching the local market would have been helpful by entering the Chinese market. If the Cheesecake Factory would have carried out a research, they would have find out interesting facts about consumers’ preference e.g. that Chinese people prefer smaller portions, a healthier menu and that they have another taste. I am sure, that by adapting just a little to these cultural differences the Cheesecake Factory would be a lot more successful in Hong Kong than it is with its over-standardization strategy.
July 9, 2018 @ 1:37 pm
Even though it is said, that standardization is important for a company that is willing to expand globally, it is sometimes crucial to consider cultural differences beforehand. In this case, the US-market is strongly different compared to the Chinese market. Not only do Chinese people prefer smaller and much healthier meals, they aren’t specifically used to consume cheese and other dairy products the same way American people do. If they don’t slightly adapt to the needs and wishes of the Chinese market, the Cheesecake Factory might have troubles finding enough customers. Communicating a message that their meals are for sharing rather than for one person might increase peoples’ interest in the restaurant chain and generate new and repeat customers. This way the company can keep their menu standardized all over the world and doesn’t have to jeopardize their image, but they will still be able to satisfy their customers and create customer value.
July 14, 2018 @ 9:45 pm
Cheesecake Factory have been very successful in the United States serving a variety of American comfort foods. Having $2 billion in revenue, it seems so easy to say that its success can also travel elsewhere. We can say that Cheesecake Factory being in the industry for forty years – has product offerings that are ready for internationalization. Therefore, serving standardized products and services in Hong Kong seems to make sense. However, the result didn’t appear to be the case. Its entry in Hong Kong wasn’t so successful due to some obvious differences in consumer preferences between its home diners and the Chinese diners. Cheesecake Factory over-standardized its product offerings during its initial opening. I think Cheesecake Factory missed to perform a thorough market research about Chinese dining preferences to ensure that its products offerings are ready for Hong Kong diners – like eating small portions or to share; eating more healthy foods, etc.
Though it is understandable why Cheesecake Factory served its standardized product offerings because adapting early on would require additional cost to adapt to the foreign target market. However, not serving or being open to even few adaptations to cater consumers’ preference early on, could potentially damage reputation – like the negative comments stated in the blog; and it could possible result to more cost to recover and improve its products and services to penetrate further in the market to earn more market share. It is therefore important that companies should have a balance approach in their standardization and adaptation strategies in entering a foreign target market. As learned from my research in restaurants industry, especially to corporations going international, local diners patronize restaurants that serve foods familiar to the local taste. People will initially wait in queue in the initial opening of foreign restaurant out of curiosity. But when curiosity fades, they will only come back for food that will satisfy their taste. Thus, it is important that restaurant companies should respond to the local preferences to stay operational and/ or grow in the new market. Though this adaptation pressure to adapt to consumers preferences is only a market attractiveness factor and will not hinder a corporation to operate in foreign target market – it is a critical factor that corporations should not miss to address to successfully penetrate to the foreign target market. Failure to address important adaptation pressure could potentially lead to exit the market.
Cheesecake Factory just opened in 2nd quarter of 2017, it can still improve its product offerings to cater to external pressure to society’s local taste/ preferences. I think it is financially stable that it can support its adaptation pressure of addressing to local preferences in Hong Kong. Like for example, serving dishes in smaller portions, which they could also price their dishes cheaper than usual. Though, they can serve the usual large portion and have a new value proposition – “pay for one meal and stretch to many.” However, if the Chinese diners prefer freshly cook meal in every meal, this new value proposition will not work. Therefore, it is very important to apply some adaptations that will work to certain market/s.
March 18, 2019 @ 1:47 pm
The Cheesecake Factory can be considered an “institution” when it comes to restaurant management. Through their standardization of the product and company itself, one would think that it is proven to go internationally easily, as standardization can be considered a crucial point for going global. Unfortunately, I think in the case of this company, they overdid it a little bit. There are always various options when going global. For some companies, it is easier than others. Personally, I think the restaurant industry is prone to adaption.
Looking at various restaurants all around the world we can say that there is a tendency that they adapt their offerings according to their new target market. Just looking at big chains like McDonalds, Hard Rock or L’Osteria each one of them always saw that there was adoption necessary and did so.
One question I would like to raise, which came to my mind during the process of writing this threat was the readiness of the Cheesecake Factory in terms of their motivation and strategy. When looking at the 10k statements of some of their competitors like RedLobster, BJ’s or Olive Garden I have to say they are “crushing” them in terms of financial indicators (e.g. the Cheesecake Factory’s net profit margin increased in each of the last three fiscal years from approximately 5.5% (2015) to 7.0% (2017)).
Because from a financial point of view, the company is performing very well. So my question would be “was it an intrinsic or extrinsic motivation to go overseas?” The answer to this question cannot be found so my assumption would be that they are doing it for experience purposes to gain some information and experience on the global level to obtain more global market share in the long run.
March 23, 2019 @ 12:00 am
I think it is great that The Cheesecake Factory maintains their core menu items regardless of where they are opening their restaurants. Being consistent, in my opinion, is what keeps them successful. The number one marketing tool is word of mouth and noticing that the opening of their restaurants are in major tourists spots, I am sure that word go arounds about their food. If the food and service are of good quality, the country in which the restaurant is operating and the culture of that country, will adapt and accept the new restaurants. Hong Kong is a great example and they are not the only culture that becomes accustomed to sharing dishes as other parts of the world this is a common practice.
June 20, 2020 @ 9:44 am
The Cheesecake Factory shows us, that standardization can go downhill very quickly, when not done right. Not changing the name, portion size and amounts of cheese maybe would work in other cultures, but definitely not in China. It’s clear that the Chinese, who are very aware of their normal daily calorie intake, are a little bit overwhelmed by these huge American-like portions. The Cheesecake Factory should invest more time into market research in China and begin to adapt to the Chinese culture. Otherwise their concept won’t work and they have to shoulder these high losses in revenue, which are a result of Chinese people having to share one meal, because they aren’t able to finish such huge portion sizes.
December 16, 2021 @ 6:22 pm
The Cheesecake Factory shows that companies going international need to do research in the consumer habits of the markets that they are entering. Though Cheesecake Factory is known for their large portions, Chinese people do not like to eat massive portions. Companies need to understand when to adapt. The Cheesecake Factory should have thought about this before entering the Chinese market. They should have begun by doing market research on eating habits and what consumers enjoy eating when they go out. They could also start by reducing portions or making family sharing dishes so that the Chinese market wouldn’t feel so taken by surprise. Some recipe changes may also be needed to adapt to the flavor preferences. If they do not change these things, they will lose money as Chinese will not want to go here to eat.
January 22, 2022 @ 8:10 am
The Cheesecake Factory made the mistake of over-standardization. Before it entered Hong Kong, it was successful to enter the global markets, such as Dubai, Canada, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Saudi Arabia, because the food cultures are similar with the U.S. However, the Asian food and American food are totally different. It keeps the standard menus for Asian, but the American food has too high calories for Chinese. If the Cheesecake Factory holds the same menus for the Hong Kong market, most people in Hong Kong could try once and never come back for the twice. If the Cheesecake Factory wants to become better in Hong Kong and enter the Chinese market, it must change its menus to adapt the Chinese taste. The KFC offered a good example to enter the Chinese market. Well known, the KFC has less market share than McDonald’s in the whole world’s market. However, the KFC is better than McDonald’s in China, because the KFC is not only adding some Chinese food into its menus, but also change some taste of the fried chicken and burgers. As a restaurant, the Cheesecake Factory should know the different culture and change the taste and menus based on the local culture, before entering the new global markets.
January 27, 2022 @ 6:00 am
In my personal opinion, if I was abroad at any of the foreign countries mentioned in this review, and saw a Cheesecake Factory, I would be appalled. It’s not that I have a bad taste towards the restaurant, but the way it is operated is extremely Americanized and doesn’t strike me as the type of place that any European would enjoy. Especially with all, that’s to offer over there and other Americanized chains that have made their way across waters, I would not particularly like to see Cheesecake. Of course, the company cannot alter its management and services to an extreme, but it definitely should have been considered while opening its first location in Hong Kong. Before going abroad, as a director and International planner for Cheesecake, I would have first assessed the environment and strategy. The culture in particular countries is very important to be knowledgeable about when internationally designing and controlling organizations. I believe that the restaurant chain could have used a global customer design, especially to differentiate American customers from Chinese customers to Hispanic customers and so on. This form of focus marketing is a strategic approach to defining and targeting consumer needs. If I had to take a crack at it, I would assume adjust Cheesecake’s menu items by serving them in smaller portions, offering regular portions as family-sized meals, and adding the company’s approved dishes that are healthier. Of course, Cheesecake does not need to change itself entirely to just blend in with other non-authentic Chinese-American cuisines, but the challenges that present themselves without defining market audience are catastrophic. In addition, I believe that a polycentric approach, such as hiring Chinese professionals as managers to enlist operations and define the need in the local market, would demonstrate a memo of commitment towards consumers and actually would have been cheaper for Cheesecake Factory. I think that disconnecting with the home country (America) would have been a great opportunity for the restaurant chain to distinguish the broader company interest. I am not sure if Cheesecake representatives would have agreed with these ideas, being that they want to transfer their services and values across all boards, but it possibly could have given them more success in abroad countries.
February 2, 2022 @ 9:13 pm
This is a prime example of why standardization is not always the key to being successful in a global market. Cheesecake Factory is known for its insanely large proportions, and high calorie counts. This is a very Americanized idea of high calorie counts and honestly ignoring them. Many Americans love the Cheesecake Factory due to the comfort foods and wide variety of choices that allow everyone in the family to find something they like. While there have been success stories of American restaurants being successful in other countries while still having an American theme (i.e. Hard Rock Cafe) those places also usually bring int he tourism elements of Americans coming to a place where they know the food or locals wanting to see American food “authentically”. Cheesecake factory is a lot to take in here in the U.S. so trying to take that very distinctive idea somewhere else is very risky. It might be beneficial, and their only mode of survival in Hong Kong, to either make the dishes smaller, or advertise the idea of having a family style restaurant where you order as a table.
February 4, 2022 @ 7:21 am
Expanding internationally or not, I think the Cheesecake Factory should keep its menu the same. Their menu that consists of over 200 items and more than half of that are comfort food dishes that contain cheese, is what they are known for. Their large portions, high calorie, comfort food, and over sugary deserts are what brings life to their name, “Cheesecake Factory”. While the portions sizes and calorie count may be foreign for some countries, they didn’t necessarily say that it was bad, but more so, different. In the article, it mentioned that a customer said, “I don’t think I can have cheese for another three months” and I don’t think this would be considered a negative comment. In America, I think we are used to the overloaded cheese plates, high calorie counts, and big portions so Cheesecake Factory may just be a more expensive place for the average population. However, expanding into other countries, this may be a new attraction and something different that people from all over their countries or communities may want to try. If the portion sizes and calories counts are what the cause of people debating on whether or not to go, Cheesecake Factory should market this as a focus on a family experience that encourages sharing.
February 4, 2022 @ 8:05 am
The Cheesecake Factory restaurants is well known in the US for its delicious cuisine, generous food portions and scrumptious cheesecakes. But as it has had good success in the US that does not always translate well into international markets for the simple reasons that taste buds are different, food portions and cultural differences. As of 2022, The Cheesecake Factory owns and operates 306 restaurants in the US and Canada with an additional 29 international locations that are operated under licensing agreements with locations in United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Mexico, the Chinese Mainland and Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau. The Cheesecake Factory has not looked to aggressively expand into international markets as it has been selective and thoroughly evaluates the international markets it is considering entering and screening its potential licensee to ensure they meet its criteria’s such as being a well-capitalized company that has established a sound business infrastructure, expertise in multiple countries, experience in operating upscale casual dining restaurants and sound governance practices. By being stringent in its international expansion The Cheesecake Factory has been able to keep tight control of its brand, reputation and quality.
But again, as The Cheesecake Factory has been successful in the US that does not always translate well into international markets as consumer in international markets are not always accepting to western restaurants and/or influence. But that is why being selective in selecting its international licensee has been critical to its success in international markets as the licensees who are experts in those local markets are able to find optimal locations and are able to manage the day-to-day operations. But standardization on the part of The Cheesecake Factory corporate and limiting the menu options to that from which it is known for and celebrated for in the US does not always appease to consumers in international market as they have kept their menu offering the same as in the US with some minor additions of local dishes. But it’s no surprise that the large food portion offering of which The Cheesecake Factory is known for shocked patrons in international markets as the US in general is known for large portion – high calorie content meals. But as consumers in China and in other international market – they decided to pay for 1 meal and share with others almost making a pseudo family style dining.
Source: https://investors.thecheesecakefactory.com/about-us/company-overview/default.aspx
February 12, 2022 @ 4:48 am
I feel as though I may have an interesting perspective on the Cheese Cake factory because I have never been there. I grew up in an Italian household with parents that were not very passionate about American food. For the longest time, I thought that Cheese Cake Factory only had cheesecake. It was not until college that my roommates started talking about it and described to me that there is much more than just cake. Additionally, the only CCF that was near me was in a mall. The concept of going out for dinner and going to the mall was almost frowned upon. Now I might be in the minority, but I’m surprised they are doing as well as they are overseas.
Now I’m not sure if they are successful because of their research of an international business or if they are just lucky that their business model works great with other countries. However, it seems that other countries are interested in bigger meals, larger menus, and having the ability to share plates. Additionally, I am sure that the food is satisfying customer needs. I do share the concern as others mentioned that this success may be limited as trends change. We all know the restaurant business is tough especially when done internationally.
March 24, 2022 @ 4:47 pm
Even though The Cheesecake Factory has been successful in the US and its other international locations, for its large-portion variety of food and desserts they offer, they had problems trying to satisfy the Chinese consumers. This is a prime example of companies wanting to go international need to research the local consumer’s preferences and in this case eating habits prior to expanding to make sure they fit in perfectly. When entering the Chinese market, The Cheesecake Factory did not adapt to the local customer’s habits as Chinese people are not used to eating large course meals full of high calories. The Cheesecake Factory did not consider this cultural difference. When entering a new foreign market, it is necessary to change the recipe and menu to adapt to the local preferences, which is what The Cheesecake Factory could have done to be successful in the Chinese market. It seems as if the other countries were successful because they had the same preferences as Americans, bigger portions, a varied menu, and high-calorie food. This is a great example of standardization not being conducted properly.
April 16, 2022 @ 9:40 pm
The Cheesecake Factory has been successful in the United States and in some international markets, but when it came to introducing the company to Hong Kong, Chinese customers were not exactly impressed by the concept. This company was not able to adapt to the local environment, and by not doing this, customers were confused by many aspects of the business. I give The Cheesecake Factory a lot of credit for being able to keep their menu the same across all restaurants even the ones they have introduced into other countries, as they have been successful in some of these markets. However, for Hong Kong, the customers here are not used to these large portions and high calories that the restaurant is known for, which is a large reason as to why they did not succeed here. Customers found themselves sharing meals because they were so large, which was would be considered a loss for the company as they are used to people in America ordering their own meals, which is double the sales. Overall, The Cheesecake Factory has been successful in international markets, however, it is important that they do research on the local environments before entering the market that way they can save money and resources.