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Souvlakihut opens company store

Sarah Stowe

Melbourne-based restaurant franchise, Souvlakihut, has launched its first company-owned store in the Northern Suburbs on Plenty Road in South Morang.

The 190-square metre restaurant will be the second company-owned Souvlakihut in the fast growing franchise chain which now counts 28 stores across four states. More than $500,000 has been invested in the development of the site, and 30 jobs created in the local area.

“We decided to keep it company-owned as we felt that we needed to have a strong presence in the northern suburbs,” said John Fotiadis, co-founder of Souvlakihut. “Based on research we conducted, we also found that a high percentage of the people in South Morang fit the profile of our core customers.”

Fotiadis intends on using the new store as a base for training new franchisees. Its first company-owned store in Keysborough will still be used for the testing of new products and business concepts because of the larger workspace available.

Fotiadis founded Souvlakihut with his brother, Bill, in 2004 in the Melbourne suburb of Hillside. The brothers have plans to reach 40 stores by the end of 2009.

John Fotiadis said: “This is a really significant milestone for us. To open our second company-owned store, on top of our other 26 franchised stores, in just five years is an incredible achievement. We are well on our way to achieving our growth targets with plans for several more stores to open in the upcoming months.”