Chaiiwala plans 150+site expansion

21 October 2020

A South Asian street food restaurant franchise has revealed plans to open 156 sites by 2023 and create 3,600 jobs.

Chaiiwala, which is headquartered in Leicester currently operates 32 sites across the country and employs 800 staff, said a growth in demand for delivery services during the Covid-19 pandemic has pushed forward its plans.

The business added that a total of 40 locations are due to be open before the end of the year.

Franchise director Nil Naik told Insider Media: "As a South Asian street food provider with Western fusion, our food and drink offering resonates well with desi and ethnic demographic customers and our expansion plans centre around our aim to reach a wider audience.

"By opening bigger stores in new locations, we are confident that the brand will achieve a bigger reach and help more customers discover what we think is the best chaii in the UK.

"Since the pandemic we have increased our delivery options across all third-party platforms such as Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat, and this has increased our takeaway sales by 10 per cent – with take out now accounting for more than 80 per cent of our sales.

"We could not have achieved this success without our franchise growth partners who live and breathe the brand.

"The first Chaiiwala locations will open in Canada in early 2021 and we have plans to expand in South Africa, Europe, and the Gulf.

"In total we have sold 189 locations in total and will open 52 stores per year over the next three years, employing an additional 1,200 people per year until 2023."