Brazilian restaurant chain Oakberry entered the Australian market in 2018 after ANZ CEO Renan Fretes-Pinto identified a gap in the market for healthy fast food. Today, there are more than 50 franchise locations and 500 head-office staff across Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and Indonesia, and there are plans to open 30 more new shops in Australia alone this year. The brand’s latest shop just opened in Sydney’s Surry Hills in April. Fretes-Pinto, who is also the founder of
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Brazilian restaurant chain Oakberry entered the Australian market in 2018 after ANZ CEO Renan Fretes-Pinto identified a gap in the market for healthy fast food.Today, there are more than 50 franchise locations and 500 head-office staff across Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and Indonesia, and there are plans to open 30 more new shops in Australia alone this year. The brand’s latest shop just opened in Sydney’s Surry Hills in April. Fretes-Pinto, who is also the founder of the popular Bar Copo and smoothie bar Smoov Australia in Bondi Beach, told Inside Retail, “Australian people are really embracing acai as part of their culture. People are saying sometimes that acai is the new bacon-and-egg roll for example.”Inside Retail: How did you bring Oakberry to Australia?Renan Fretes Pinto: We opened the first international store in Bondi in December 2018.Georgios Frangulis, the founder and CEO of Oakberry worldwide, is a very good childhood friend of mine, and he had he started Oakberry in Brazil.I thought that this concept would go so well in Australia. I hadn’t seen any reference brand or competition in the Australian market, so I put the idea forward to him, that I wanted to bring Oakberry to Australia, and he loved the idea.The brand didn’t have any presence internationally so we started the internationalisation of Oakberry worldwide.We did a lot of market research in Australia and then found the perfect shop location on Gould Street in Bondi Beach.IR: Why Bondi Beach?RFP: I had always lived in Bondi Beach when I was in Australia, it’s the most iconic beach in Australia. To position the brand here just made a lot of sense.IR: Are there any plans to announce Oakberry products in any major supermarkets or retailers anytime soon?RFP: One hundred per cent. We have started this new journey throughout our store network and received early feedback from customers to see what would perform well through other retailers.The expansion of this business line into supermarkets, local health emporiums and stores is definitely on the cards.We’ve been discussing with a few players in the market and are really taking care of where to position ourselves at the beginning of the project, in terms of who we want to partner with. Long-term we want to be available across as many places as possible, giving people nationwide convenient access to Oakberry products at home.IR: How will you ensure this won’t negatively impact the success of the DTC product offering?RFP: This experience will be different than the one customers have at our Oakberry shops. We don’t see it as direct competition. Having the brand in people’s homes will allow them to easily eat it for breakfast, which will differ from the experience they have when they venture to an Oakberry store. IR: What products is Oakberry developing to bring to supermarket retail?RFP: We have the acai sorbet tubs we launched nationwide in Oakberry stores last year and new flavours of these tubs are coming very soon.In addition, we have the Oakberry vegan granola and peanut butter. Oak Protein Bars and Oak Matcha Energy Tea are also coming to Australia soon.IR: What is your dream for Oakberry and what are your goals for the future?RFP: My dream with Oakberry is to be the biggest acai brand worldwide – and we are on this journey already – and to provide a healthy alternative to people within the fast-food industry, to show that you can eat fast in a healthier way.We have a mission to become a superfood platform, with acai as our main product, and to bring to the market different products and tap into retail, not just through our shop network, but through supermarkets. Bringing different alternatives to our customers is on our minds every day.We just want to keep delivering the goods to everybody and making a difference.IR: What do you feel is the biggest milestone you’ve achieved with Oakberry Australia and the international expansion so far? RFP: It’s so good to see people relate to the product and the brand. I feel so happy when I hear young kids in front of an Oakberry shop say, ‘I’m going to have an Oakberry.’ They’re not even saying acai bowl, it’s an Oakberry, please.Becoming a top-of-mind brand recognised by everybody is beautiful to see, and it’s what we continue to aim for.
