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- From the very beginning, the vision behind the Fish Delish brand was to create a concept that would be organized and standardized down to the smallest details
- In the development of the project, they are assisted by franchise pioneer in Croatia Andrija Čolak
- The Croatian franchise scene is still emerging; we do not yet have even 50 franchise systems. We are where the USA was in the early 50s of the last century
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Just under three years ago, Stefano Petrović opened the first Fish Delish restaurant in Murter. It was a pandemic year with many open questions, but that did not bother him too much. For a long time, he says, the idea had been forming, growing, and developing in his mind, and the final realization was very close to the original concept of his own restaurant.
– We took a risk, and not knowing what to expect in the pandemic season, we opened the facility, a designer-furnished mobile unit (in the form of an industrial container) in Murter and achieved excellent results, which, along with customer satisfaction, were the main impetus for further expansion and the start of franchising – Petrović told us, whose restaurant will soon open its doors in distant New Jersey.
Modern, innovative, and different from others
The idea for the brand had been forming in his mind for many years. For years, Petrović has been family and business-related to hospitality, as well as the fishing industry, given that he is employed in a family trading company that has long been engaged in the import, export, and processing of fish and fish products, as well as supplying restaurants throughout the Adriatic with food products.
– Throughout my career, I had the opportunity to analyze the market, customer habits, and trends in detail, and I quickly noticed what was missing in the hospitality offer. Likewise, I am a travel enthusiast, and through my travels, I had the opportunity to see numerous foreign franchises and how they function in practice, which encouraged me to explore the franchise business model and apply that knowledge in forming my own business – he added.
In this way, he says, the idea for the Fish Delish brand was formed, a modern, innovative, and in every way different street food restaurant. To start, he designed dishes whose main ingredient is fish, which he paired with sides and sauces of his own recipe, and rounded off the whole story with a recognizable visual identity, interior and exterior design, and an easily memorable name.
– The exclusive and uncompromising emphasis is on the quality of the ingredients, along with an innovative approach related to the preparation, processing, and combination of ingredients. Likewise, the guiding principle in the realization of the project was to create a pleasant and relaxed atmosphere in which a wide range of customers can casually enjoy fish dishes – said Petrović.
Help from a Franchise Pioneer in Croatia
Currently, there are five Fish Delish locations, a ‘standalone’ unit in Murter, ‘store’ facilities in Vodice, Makarska, and Bol on Brač, which operate seasonally, and one year-round location in the Avenue Mall shopping center in Zagreb.
– In the process of opening is the aforementioned New Jersey. We already have a new franchise agreement in Croatia that will soon open its doors, and we will soon announce where exactly. We are in final negotiations with several other locations, which remain a secret for now – Petrović added.
From the very beginning, the vision behind the brand was to create a concept that would be organized and standardized down to the smallest details. Petrović was also convinced that a very rare ‘fish story’ in a modern way would surely find its place in the market. Franchising the brand was planned in advance, and at the beginning, it depended on customer satisfaction with their product. After an excellently executed 2020 season, numerous compliments and customer satisfaction were further incentives for the development of the franchise concept.
In this development, he received significant help from entrepreneur Andrija Čolak, also the most successful Croatian franchiser.
– Colak Franchise Consulting Group designed the business franchise model for the Fish Delish brand. We started the entire process back in 2020, and the brand began to grow in the number of locations very quickly after offering its franchise model – said Čolak.
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Today they operate on a ‘turnkey’ basis
Petrović also commented on the collaboration, emphasizing that Čolak’s professionalism, knowledge, and experience, as well as availability at all times, have been and remain of great help.
– Mr. Čolak provided us with detailed instructions on where to start so that our franchise would have a head and tail and be properly set up from the very beginning. He gave us guidelines according to which we gradually built the brand and created all the necessary documentation that we now hand over to franchisees in full, from Operational Manual, Recipe Book, Standards Book, to the very important legal segment in which we received instructions for protecting the intellectual property of the trademark, drafts of cooperation agreements, and so on – said Petrović.
Explaining their collaboration, he added that it was a long process of listing and explaining every part of the business processes they encounter in business, from hiring lawyers, architects, contractors to various suppliers who today all offer recipients on a ‘turnkey’ basis. In this process, Petrović said, Čolak is an exceptional support and advisor they can always rely on.
– Unlike the previously mentioned domestic franchise market, which is just waiting for its final takeoff and full development, the franchise market in the USA is very strong, fully developed, regulated, and highly sought after. It is very common there to take over an already established and standardized business, where the entire process of entering the business is very clearly defined and where success is less uncertain due to the proven operation of the brand in the market.
The development of the franchise system there was the guiding thread in accepting this project in the USA. Why New Jersey? Because we had an interested buyer from there. At this stage, we have a lot of work ahead of us to adapt the franchise to the local market, but we look forward to the new challenges ahead of us – commented Petrović.
Croatia is now where the USA was in the 50s
Čolak explained to us in detail how demanding the franchise industry and the development of such projects are.
– The USA is truly the most potent but also the most demanding market in the world. I advise brands on several key elements. Branding, be sure to think carefully about all the key elements of the brand such as naming, identity, and so on; it often happens that the brand name does not function properly in international markets.
Then, think carefully about logistics and whether it is possible to have suppliers in the market where the franchise is being established. I would also advise being well developed in the domestic and European markets before entering the USA market. Finally, it is essential to have enough capital to launch your own flagship location in the USA and to have the right team of people, from lawyers to consultants – Čolak told us.
He explained that the Croatian and American franchise industries are incomparable. The industry in the USA accounts for 3.5 percent (827 billion dollars) of GDP, while in Croatia, we cannot yet count 50 franchise systems, most of which have started in the last three years. Croatia is, he says, where the USA was in the early 50s of the last century regarding the franchise industry.
– Most often, we are not accustomed to the level of regulation that exists in the USA when it comes to franchising. Then, most brands are not sufficiently capitalized for that step. I must say that the Croatian franchise scene is still in its infancy, and many steps need to be taken before we become adept at launching domestic brands in a market like that in the USA. Brands like Surfin’Chicken, which we launched in the USA, are truly pioneers and very extreme ventures through which we learn a lot – concluded Čolak.
