Auntie Anne's has opened its first store in the USA state Alaska. Owned and operated by Washington-based franchise owners Lynn Van Vactor and Vicki Winn, the first Auntie Anne's Alaska store is located at the Dimond Center in Anchorage.

Located in Moscow's Pushkin Square, where more than 30,000 customers were served on opening day -breaking the record for first-day sales in McDonald's history - the first McDonald's in Russia celebrates its 20th anniversary in a country that has become the chain's fastest growing market in Europe.

Silver Spring-based hotel franchisor Choice Hotels announced its first foray into Poland Monday, with plans to franchise six hotels in the country.

The new additions to the hospitality company’s portfolio are owned and managed by Krakow-based Hotel System. The hotels include Clarion Hotel Grand Baltic Resport & Spa in Dzwirzyno, and five Quality brand hotels in the cities of Krakow, Posen, Kattowiz and Breslau.

QSR Brands Bhd will open five new Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlets and its first Pizza Hut restaurant in Cambodia this year.

Chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ali said that three new KFC outlets would be in Phnom Penh city, and one each in Kampong Cham, about a two-hour drive from Phnom Penh, and in Battambang, near the Thai border.

McDonald’s Corp., the world’s largest restaurant company, will increase capital investment in China by 25 percent this year as it overhauls stores and offers free wireless Internet services to woo customers.