ONE thing about us Guyanese is that we spare not our pockets to satisfy our hunger. Man has got to eat to survive and Guyanese are definitely no exception. A few years ago I wrote a letter about the dissatisfaction of the old state of the Demico Restaurant in New Amsterdam, while at that time; Georgetown Demico buildings were all rehabilitated to have a modern look. A few months later, the New Amsterdam branch was rebuilt to the current structure which still stands today. I have always felt an obligation to support this local restaurant chain which has been in existence for quite some time now. Guyanese should always support first locally present businesses whether supermarkets, eateries, and even products. But to stay in the game competition is vital, even for these local companies. We have a wide array of foreign restaurants in Guyana over the past decades, and more springing up everyday. Demico House has not kept up with the competition, which is the basis of this article. I did a few comparing of prices of items with Demico and other fast- food joints in Guyana and I am not pleased with the exorbitant prices Medico continues to charge Guyanese on a daily basis.

Let me give a few examples: Royal Castle has a 3- piece combo for $1100, Church’s for $1080, while Demico has it for $1,295. Royal Castle has 12 pieces of Chicken for $3,500 (3 legs, 3 wings, 3 breasts, 3 thighs) while Demico sells the same number of chicken pieces and description for $4708. Demico also sells 10 pieces of chicken (4 thighs, 3 legs, 3 wings), fries and a 2- litre drink for $4,000. Demico also has 10 pieces of Chicken (3 breasts, 3 thighs, and the rest made up of legs and wings) for $3200. Let’s deal with the Kids’ items. A Kids’ Meal at KFC costs $880 and this includes a toy; while at Royal Castle, it costs $700 and includes toy too, and $490 at Church’s. A Kid’s Meal at Demico costs anywhere between $600 and $900 (source Newspaper ad). A one- piece chicken combo at Royal Castle costs $440, $625 at KFC, while the same item costs $770 at our very own Demico Guyanese restaurant! A burger combo costs $700 at KFC while it costs $800 at KFC and $1000 at Royal Castle .

I could not have itemized every single item in these restaurants but I believe the numbers and figures of the above- mentioned items represent a fair amount of items which I compared between the three popular restaurants in Guyana, two of them being a non- Guyanese restaurant chain, but have still managed to keep prices down on a plethora of items for the Guyanese consumer.

I made contact with Demico House Manager in Georgetown Mr. Andrew James for further comments. He stated that the prices charged by Demico are in exchange for a better quality of item and product purchased. He said that the other restaurants “use technicalities” when selling items in relation to the chicken pieces used. He also said that they use smaller pieces of chicken than what Demico uses. He also alleged that Royal Castle does not have the same price range and menu on a daily basis. He is convinced Demico House is meeting the pockets of Guyanese with numerous offers on a daily basis.

Maybe the closure of the Arvida Restaurant in Linden might have been prevented with a little cost analysis and restructuring of prices by Demico. Demico needs to get with the times. They need to be competitive in this competitive business market. Future Line Fast foods, another longstanding restaurant which has been in existence for a very long time in Berbice, is going to take over Demico’s market soon. Future Line would’ve done it already if they had used a little more consumer tactic and improved their services as well.

I have been a shopper at Demico House for years. I believe this restaurant chain, which falls under the purview of another great Guyanese company Banks DIH, has been embedded in our rich Guyanese culture and tradition. Guyanese have grown accustomed to the various items and services provided by this company over the years. I-Cee soft drinks, Banks Beer and Malta, among others are just a few for Banks DIH, while Shrove Tuesday Pancakes, milkshakes, Mother’s Day Baskets, and Hot Cross Buns have been the array of offers by this restaurant throughout the calendar year. However, as can be seen from my analysis above, Guyanese pay far too much for shopping at Demico outlets nationwide. For a local company, this should not be.