David Elia, one of Melbourne’s young entrepreneurs, has his heart and his hip pocket set on acquiring a share of the healthy food market in Sydney.
His healthy food franchise,
Trios, managed jointly with his two brothers, Elias and Sam, serves nutritious wraps, salads and spuds and has been growing steadily throughout Victoria since its inception in 2002.
David believes if he plays his cards right he could see the same success throughout New South Wales; with the first Trios store established in Sydney late last year expected to be the first of many to cross the border.
“You’ve got to be in it to win it and we’ve just entered the Sydney marketplace with our first store located at Macarthur Square Shopping Centre in Campbelltown and we’ve already secured a second store that’s set to open its doors within weeks at the Miranda Westfield Shopping Centre,” David said.
“The
healthy food phenomenon has taken the Sydney market by storm and now is the perfect time to get on board and stake claim to some of the market share.
“We’ll have some competition with the likes of Sumo Salads which already has a number of stores within New South Wales; but our brand and our products are unique.”
So too is David’s past and he is no stranger to challenges. As the son of Lebanese immigrants who arrived in Australia six months before David was born, the family worked hard to equip themselves for their new life abroad.
The 39-year-old recalls how as a teenager he worked long hours in cafes and take-away restaurants to save money to put towards his progressive plans.
At the age of 19 David had saved enough to buy a small café in the growing Melbourne suburb of Moonee Ponds and put all he had learnt to the test. “It was a lot of hard work, but it was something I had a passion for; I was brought up with good, hearty food and I wanted people to experience meals the way they were meant to be,” David said.
The up and coming entrepreneur introduced customers to a new-age style of dining that consisted of blended juices, European style coffees and fresh sandwiches prepared on flat bread.
“When my family first arrived in Australia there was no such thing as flat bread we had to prepare it from scratch. My brothers and I used to help our mother bake Lebanese flat bread every week and as soon as it had come out of the oven we would smear it with Vegemite,” David said.
David saw first hand the success of the style of dining he was offering, and together with his brothers, he adapted one of his fondest childhood memories to create the healthy food franchise known as Trios.
The establishment of Trios coincided with the boom in the healthy
fast food industry and the trend has been continuing to soar in popularity ever since.
“We did our research and found that Australians eat more than 450 million sandwiches annually and more than a third of the money spent on food in Australia is going towards meals prepared outside the home, so that gives us great scope to own a good portion of the national market.” David’s Lebanese heritage helped him to create Trios’ signature product known as the ‘Laffé Wrap™’.
“The Laffé Wrap™ is an authentic warm sandwich wrap that is made fresh when ordered, with healthy gourmet fillings in specially designed flat bread.”
Trios’ wraps comprise of the brothers’ original recipe Laffé bread that contains carefully selected ingredients to give it a great flavour without being too dense.
“I wanted a product that wasn’t as dense as other breads seen on supermarket shelves and offered in typical sandwich bars; what we’ve created literally is the best thing since sliced bread.
“The Laffé bread lends the focus of the wrap to the fillings and is low in fat and salt and high in fibre, it’s also available in four different styles: linseed, wholemeal, sourdough and rye,” David said.
In just over two years David’s project, Trios, has seen great success with 13 stores now operating throughout Melbourne and Sydney and with a solid franchise module in place, the forecast is to establish 20 stores by the end of 2006 with that figure expected to double into 2007.
“I like the challenge of running a successful franchise company and I predict we will see significant growth in store numbers and recognition of the Trios brand throughout New South Wales and Queensland this year.”
The Trios franchise system has been well thought out and established to create a fun and healthy food business, that fills a need gap in the marketplace and appeals to health conscious individuals who appreciate fresh, fast and functional food.
“My passion lies in business; I enjoy establishing plans and taking ideas from scratch and moulding them into successful business ventures,” David said.
“It’s important for all aspiring entrepreneurs to embrace their heritage and all it has taught them, because life experience is one of the best tools for success.”
9-Aug-2007