Torrp It Up plans 300 stores pan India

Share with us your entrepreneurial journey and enlighten us what motivated you to enter the hospitality industry?

Living the most essential years of my life in London exposed me to ideas, which were unique within the hospitality industry. Upon returning to India, I realised the dearth of quick and hygienic restaurants since this space was mostly occupied by street vendors or mom and pop shops. This lack was what motivated me to start a QSR chain, which would serve customers quick, fresh and hygienic food without burning a hole in their pockets. My family background has also included a fair bit of hospitality with ownership of two hotels. The experience also helped me along my journey and to establish Torrp It Up.

There is so much happening in the hospitality industry. What makes your brand better from the rest? What is your USP?

Our forte lies in the fact that we give our customers international tasting food at very competitive prices. Vegetarians get an equal variety as non-vegetarians, which was a major factor that all other sandwich/wrap brands lack. Our strong backend enables us to establish a level of standardisation and quality across all our outlets.

Elaborate the products and services that your brand offers to the hospitality industry?

We are serving torpedo sandwich and wraps in 10 different flavours vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Apart from that we are also servicing tartines and croissant sandwiches and salads. We also have sides as french fries, chicken wings, potato pops, which can complete a meal at Torrp It Up. Our beverages line includes iced tea/coffee and delicious milkshakes. We also serve desserts such as freshly baked brownies, cookies sandwiches and choco lava cake.

What criteria do you follow for selecting franchisees on board?

• Stability & Capability of finances
• Keen Interest taken by their business & managing their day to day operations
• Following all standards & procedures given by the Parent Company.

What kind of training and business support do you provide to the franchisees? Elaborate on the same?

We provide all the required training to our franchisees, which includes operational training, product know how, hiring, sales, marketing, new store opening, troubleshooting as well as sourcing of raw material and equipment. There would be various performance tests to evaluate the knowledge of the staff.

Franchisees shall also be trained in their orientation for advertising and marketing strategies. Apart from that, we offer constant support to our franchisees so that they can maximise on the best advertising and marketing strategies available to them.

How many outlets are you planning to open by the end of 2016? How many of these outlets will be franchise & company-owned?

We are planning to roll about 300 stores pan India. By the end of December 2016, we plan to add 12 own stores and six franchised and another four by March 2017. We also plan 120 franchise outlets by 2021 and 180 company stores.

Presently, different start-ups are transforming the hospitality industry through various QSR concepts with new products coming in. What’s your take on the growing competition and what are your strategies to compete?

Competitions are always a good thing since that keeps us on our toes. The growing QSR sector signifies growth and demand for quick and hygienic food in the market, which has always been at the backbone of our operations and also opens up new doors to opportunities. Innovation, standardisation and maintaining high quality of product and service would definitely be our strategies that would rely on to beat the growing competition.

Where do you see your brand heading? Do you ever wish to evolve in terms of the services you provide and take over hospitality as a whole?

As a brand, we wish to grow and become the number one chain of restaurants in India for sandwiches and wraps. We plan to be the one stop sandwich shop serving lip smacking food and aim to be the best sandwich delivery chain in the future.

Franchise facts:

Investment: 15-25 Lacs

Existing outlets: 13 in Mumbai + 7 in Pune CO

Area: 300-500 sq. ft.

Return-on-investment (ROI): 18 / 24 months

Target cities: Mumbai / Pune / Delhi / Bangalore

Preferred location: Prime area on a main street with good visibility, facing main road with minimum 10-15 feet frontage, good signage space, water, drainage and electrical connection, food outlets, Easy parking, shop with pre-existing licenses.

Year of starting franchise operations: 2016

Year of inception: 2010