George Heos, CEO and co-founder of Eat Up Canada, is navigating the competitive quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry with a strategy focused on growth and guest experience.
Heos, who oversees the brands Pokeworks, Bombay Frankie’s, and Mighty Bird, is leading the company through an expansion phase, with plans to open 10 to 14 new locations in 2025. The company has already opened seven Bombay Frankie’s, five Pokeworks, and three Mighty Bird locations within Ontario in the last 18 months.
As they continue to grow, Heos and his business partner Alexander Gerzon are targeting new markets in British Columbia and Alberta by the fall, with the goal of eventually reaching all Canadian provinces.
What sets Eat Up Canada apart, according to Heos, is their dedication to offering a superior guest experience. Heos emphasizes that while food quality and marketing are crucial, it’s the interaction with customers and the environment in which they dine that creates lasting impressions.
Unlike typical QSRs, Heos’ brands elevate the dining experience by offering table service, using plateware and silverware, and providing a more personalized atmosphere. As the company looks toward the future, Heos remains committed to developing their existing brands while exploring new concepts, all while focusing on speed and flexibility in securing real estate and expanding into larger, more affordable spaces.
“We own and operate one corporate restaurant, which is our training restaurant and centre of excellence. We want to run a successful, well-managed restaurant to show franchisees what it looks like. For example, our corporate restaurant for Mighty Bird is in Burlington, for Bombay Frankie’s, we have two locations: one in Ajax and one in Newmarket. For Pokeworks, it’s in Etobicoke,” said Heos.
“The restaurant industry has always been challenging, and I’ve been in this business for 30 years. It’s one of the most competitive industries out there because the barrier to entry is very low. Everyone eats, so everyone thinks they can run a restaurant. But what’s really interesting about this industry is that new brands are always emerging with new foods.
“For instance, five years ago, Poke would have been very little known. If you went to Hawaii, you’d know Poke, but now it’s becoming much more popular globally. A long time ago sushi was quite unknown. The same thing with burritos. Now they’re everywhere. Shawarma. People’s taste change. The market is more international now, and what used to be “ethnic food” is just food now. There’s always room for new, cool concepts.
“However, I think sometimes restaurants forget it’s about the food and the guest service. Marketing is really important, but guest experience is key.”
Heos said most of this year’s expansion will be with the Pokeworks brand with an expected six to eight openings. Eat Up Canada will also open three or four Mighty Bird locations and one or two Bombay Frankie’s.
“We’re expanding Bombay Frankie’s menu a bit before we fully expand it,” he said.
“There are many people who want to build a brand to a certain level and then sell to large consolidators. We don’t have that plan. My business partner, Alex Gherzon, and I enjoy what we do. We love supporting our franchisees and enhancing the guest experience. We’ll continue developing these brands and exploring new opportunities. We’re always presented with opportunities for new concepts, but we want to stay hands-on and not overwhelm ourselves with too many brands. We focus on quality, not quantity,” he said.
“One thing we’ve had a lot of success with is real estate. Competition for smaller spaces is intense, and rents have skyrocketed. In 30 years, I’ve never seen as much competition for those spaces. So we’ve focused on securing larger spaces, anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 square feet, and then dividing them into two or three units. This allows us to secure better sites and get them at more economical rates.
“We’ve done four, and our fifth is in the works. We’re dividing a 5,600-square-foot space into three units.
“One advantage we have is speed. We can secure deals much faster than large companies because we’re a smaller operation. We can deal directly with landlords and get things done quickly, which is a huge advantage.”
Related Retail Insider stories:
- US-Based Poke Brand ‘Pokeworks’ Continues Canadian Expansion with New Locations Following Market Entry Last Year [Interview]
- Fast-Casual Restaurant Concept MightyBird Opening 1st Location in Toronto in a Partnership [Interviews]
