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Food & beverage · Montreal · Pre-launch

Quick-service restaurant

A shawarma and falafel concept with great food and no business behind it yet. We built the brand, the strategy and the operations, and stayed until opening day.

← All work
Shawarma and falafel wraps on a tray

Where they were

Great food. No business around it yet.

  • Strong recipes and a clear idea of the feeling they wanted: nostalgic, welcoming, modern. No brand and no operational clarity to go with it.
  • Founders new to setting up and running a business, unsure whether their ideas made sense commercially.
  • No launch plan tying the design, the marketing and the operations together before opening day.

The ambition was bigger than one shop: a recognisable name that could grow into more locations and more revenue streams. That needed a business, not just a kitchen.

What we did

Strategist and facilitator, from concept to opening

We took the business apart on paper before it existed, built the pieces that were missing, and then coordinated the people who brought it to life.

Marketing

  • In-depth market analysis of the local quick-service scene
  • Positioning as a nostalgic, modern Lebanese eatery, and the brand direction to match
  • A launch marketing strategy the founders could run themselves
  • Coordination with designers on identity and interiors

Operations

  • A full business audit to map the gaps before opening
  • Kitchen and service processes set up for consistent execution
  • Menu refined for speed, margin and repeatability
  • Coordination with tradespeople and service providers through the fit-out

Growth

  • A one-year and three-year growth plan
  • Milestones for retail grocery products, a catering arm and partnerships
  • A model built to be replicated across locations with the same standards

How it went

Four stages, through to launch

  1. 1

    Discovery

    A comprehensive audit of the concept, the founders’ capacity and the market, to find the gaps and the opportunities.

  2. 2

    Strategy

    Market research report, marketing strategy and action plan, plus the one-year and three-year growth plan.

  3. 3

    Execution

    Hands-on with designers, tradespeople and the team while the concept became a place, keeping operations streamlined as it took shape.

  4. 4

    Launch

    We stayed until opening day, with every key element aligned: brand, menu, processes, marketing.

The first three months

Sold out, daily, from the day they opened

What changed

  • One of the most talked-about quick-service restaurants in their market within weeks of opening
  • Streamlined systems, a refined menu and consistent execution, day after day

What it was built for

  • Retail packaging for grocery distribution
  • A catering arm as a second revenue stream
  • More locations, on the same model and the same standards

Where they are now

Rated one of the top restaurants in Montreal

The concept held. Now it’s being scaled.

  • Lines around the block In Montreal, when it’s hot, everyone is outside. Last summer the queue wrapped around the block.
  • Longer opening hours Demand outgrew the original schedule, so the hours were extended.
  • Equipment fully upgraded The kitchen was re-equipped from top to bottom to keep up with volume.
  • A second location in the works The model was built to be replicated. They’re now looking for site number two.
  • Ghost kitchens on the table Delivery-only kitchens are being explored as the next revenue stream.

Next project

Scitentia, North America →

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