FEATURE - Vision, Passion and Hard Work

O'Briens franchising business model has flourished in Ireland over the last decade. The Irish owned-franchise O'Briens has dominated high street locations and generated millions of euro in turnover. The man behind this remarkable success story is Brody Sweeney.
Brody firmly believes in the franchise business model, "Establishing the basic model is the vital ingredient. A good franchising arrangement is like a marriage in which both sides will benefit if they work together".

He identifies the three key elements of successful franchise as a good concept, a good retail location and a good operator. A certain degree of flexibility with regard to the formula is also important."

The target market for O'Briens is young, white-collar worker.
"Our target market is the 18-35 year olds, high disposable income, with a passion for healthy food, and for choice whether they are from the centre of Singapore, Limerick, Copenhagen or Chicago."

O'Briens successful formula means that their top selling outlets - Dublin Airport, Blanchardstown and Manchester Airport have a turnover in excess of €1million. The Dublin Airport outlet is believed to have sales of over €1.5 million per annum, while the newly opened Heathrow Airport is said to have surpassed Dublin Airport in its first three months of comparative sales.

Brody opened his first O'Briens in 1988. After opening four shops he franchised out his first outlet in 1994. He is now overseeing an ambitious
€ 6million expansion plan, under which aims to open 400 outlets in Britain, and two flagship stores per year by 2008.

How has O'Briens grown from a store in Great George's Street in 1988 to a thriving 230 stores across four continents?
-
 Through learning and perfecting the business
-
 Through managing the transition from an established Irish brand to an international one
-
 Through a lucrative deal with SSP (Select Service Partner) in 1998, a member of the world-wide Compass Group, which employs 170,000 people in the food and catering industry
(Compass owns 40 per cent of all food outlets in British airports and 80 per cent of food outlets in railway stations there).
 
-
 Through signing a
   - £3 million deal with an Australian partner in 1998.
   - £5 million deal with Master Franchisee from Singapore for the Asian market in 1999.
   - deal with Master Franchisee from Scandinavia in 2003
 
 
How It All Began...
Brody opened his first O'Briens Irish Sandwich Bar in Great George's Street in 1988. He wanted a name that was intrinsically Irish, as from the outset he had plans to franchise the concept in other countries. He eventually picked the name from a local telephone directory.

"I dreamt it up to take it abroad, so I needed to have a name that would have an Irish twang to it."

Brody's experience in franchising began through his involvement with a British printing business, Prontoprint, the Irish license was held by his father.

Learning From Mistakes
The location of Brody's first store was not suited to selling sandwiches and performed poorly, but the second was a roaring success. He borrowed heavily to open a third outlet but it was a complete disaster as there was simply no appetite for his product in that location. He lost almost £100,000 on the store and it nearly brought down the entire chain. "I made a dog's dinner of it at the start. Lack of experience was really the bottom line."

But Brody was able to learn from his many mistakes, and at each step he could refine the O'Briens concept. His theory was simple. Sandwiches were the biggest single sector of the fast food market but there was no dominant chain. "That was the opportunity, to put a brand name on a sandwich" ...and he did just that.
Building the Brand
From the start O'Briens marketing and public relations strategy has been aggressive. From the International Photography Competition which began in 1997, to the S.O.S., Send O'Briens Sandwiches radio campaign in 2001 and O'Briens new healthy lifestyle "Guilt Free Food" campaign in 2003 O'Briens have used many different avenues to enhance brand awareness.

Successful franchise sales from the start made massive inroads in building the brand. O'Briens cluster approach to large cities to gain critical mass for the brand has made O'Briens the market leader in Scotland and Ireland.

The first franchises were opened in Dublin and Brody quickly noticed the impact that each new business had on the existing locations. "As soon as you opened a new outlet all the existing stores saw a 2 to 3 percent jump in their business."
Healthy Lifestyle
O'Briens benefits from the general move towards a healthier lifestyle among consumers, and Brody believes this gives business a crucial advantage into the future. "We are offering fast food which is fun and good for you."

O'Briens "Guilt Free Food" Campaign ...features a Calorie Counter which lists the fat and calorie content of O'Briens breads, meats, cheeses, fish, hot drinks, salads, sauces. O'Briens know that with today's busy lifestyles more and more people are relying on fast foods and convenience foods for many of their meals. It is important that as these kinds of foods make up a large proportion of our diets that we should be given information on how to incorporate healthy options into the diet.

"It is important that people become better informed about what they eat, that they understand the health risks associated with the food choices they make. In practical terms in order to do this they need practical information about which foods to choose in order to be healthy - this calorie counter is an ideal tool for this," states Brody.
A Man with His Vision of the Future
Brody plans to open 1,000 franchises worldwide by 2008. He believes O'Briens will then have reached the critical mass needed to generate both the necessary supplier discounts and brand awareness to become the number one sandwich store
 
O'Briens had a turnover of €65 million in 2002.
 
O'BRIENS:
-
 O'Briens Irish Sandwich Bars is the market leader in Ireland and Scotland and is expanding worldwide
 
-
 CEO, Brody Sweeney, opened the first O'Briens in Dublin in 1988. Over the last fifteen years, he and his team have successfully opened more than 230 franchises in Ireland, UK, the USA, Australia, Netherlands, Singapore and Malaysia.
 
-
 O'Briens has recently signed an agreement with Master Franchisee Jesper Andresen (Ex-CEO McDonalds in Denmark) to open stores in Scandinavia.
 
-
 O'Briens latest venture in autumn 2003 is into India and Taiwan, opening stores in New Dehli and Taipei.
 
-
 One of six finalits in the British Franchisor of the Year 2003, O'Briens won Franchisee of the Year in 2001.
 
-
 Nominated one of the UK's best sandwich bars by the Sunday Times Style Magazine in 2000, O'Briens has won many franchise awards including Irish Franchisor of the Year.
 
-
 At the British Sandwich Association Awards 2001, O'Briens Irish Sandwich Bars beat off stiff competition from across the industry to win Sandwich Marketeer of the Year. O'Briens was chosen by the judges for the quality of its overall marketing strategy.
 
-
 The O'Briens concept facilitates the development of one, then a series of retail stores, in tandem with bulk catering opportunities, particularly within the local business community. O'Briens also offers the chance to site mobile sandwich and coffee counters in large office blocks, acting as an "in house café".
 
-
 Although well known for its sandwiches and healthy option WrapposTM, its coffee sales have tripled over the past two years, with a choice of cappuccinos, espressos, caffe lattes and mochas. Fresh soups, snacks, crisps and a wide range of soft drinks also make up the O'Briens product portfolio.
 
-
 O'Briens was one of the official sponsors of the 2003 Special Olympic World Summer Games, the biggest sporting event in 2003, which took place in Dublin, Ireland.
 
-
 O'Briens Irish Sandwich Bars Ltd is a member of the British Franchise Association, International Franchise Association and the Irish Franchise Association. The International head office is based in Dublin, Ireland, with support offices in Scotland, England, North America, Australia and Asia.