By Sanj Sanghera and Laura Bruce, Co-founders, Doner Shack
In today’s competitive market, many brands treat expansion like a race, prioritising rapid growth over building a solid operational foundation. This short-sighted approach often leads to significant issues down the line, such as closures or struggling franchisees who bear the financial burden of implementing new systems, upgrading equipment or redesigning fit-outs to meet evolving brand standards.
Without taking the time to refine processes, ensure consistency and create a scalable infrastructure, these brands risk sacrificing quality and profitability for the sake of speed, ultimately jeopardising long-term success.
It takes courage to decide to halt the expansion of your brand and take a step back in order to build a solid foundation to support the future of your business. In this article, we discuss the benefits of pausing expansion and how this has led to global expansion for Doner Shack.
Halting growth is not for the faint-hearted
First things first – let’s address the elephant in the room. Taking a step back is often perceived as a sign of failure but for Doner Shack, it was the recipe for success.
Sometimes, stepping back isn’t about retreating – it’s about setting the stage for a greater leap forward. Rapid growth can sometimes be a bad thing – scaling too quickly can lead to inconsistent operations across locations, diluting brand quality and leading to subpar customer experiences.
For fast casual restaurants, flavours, experiences and service need to be in sync across your operation before adding more locations, suppliers and moving parts. By strategically halting expansion, you allow time for your business to gain clarity and time to build a resilient foundation for meaningful, scalable growth.
Space for innovation
Halting expansion creates space to innovate. Doner Shack completely shook up the kebab scene when it introduced items such as sliders and loaded fries which gave its signature doner products a modern twist.
In the same way, taking a strategic pause also provided an opportunity for the business to refine and strengthen its supply chain operations. This included optimising procurement processes, streamlining logistics and fostering more robust relationships with suppliers. By addressing these areas proactively, Doner Shack built a more resilient and efficient supply chain capable of supporting future growth sustainably.
We spent valuable time on the brand repositioning, determined to avoid early stagnation for our fast casual restaurant model. The results show that our British restaurants are now welcoming customers back two to three times a month on average with month-on-month sales up 35% on the previous year – thanks to a 60% increase in delivery sales and 12% in-restaurant.
A step back for a leap forward
For franchise-based fast casual restaurants like Doner Shack, taking a step back allows for enhanced support to current franchisees, fostering their success and creating a solid foundation for future franchise expansion.
Our decision to pause expansion has been instrumental in securing master franchise deals in India and establishing a solid foundation for the upcoming U.S. launch. Doner Shack’s International Franchise Association membership further enhances our global credibility, providing valuable resources and connections to support our international growth.
We’re now ready and really excited to be putting an international foot forward. It’s our responsibility to be conscientious and put us in a great position for the brand worldwide. We have formed a strong head office team with the right mix of professional skills, all of whom are passionate and committed to driving the brand forward.
Posted: 11th March, 2025