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Paleo Café franchises after just six months

Sarah Stowe

While Jai and Marlies Hobbs had franchising in their sights when they opened their Cairns based business, Paleo Caf_ in October 2012, they never thought it would happen so quickly.   

Soon after the caf_ opened it attracted a loyal following of locals eager to improve their eating habits and overall health, and they received franchising enquiries within weeks of its opening.

“Everyone thought we were downright crazy. But it’s been highly successful, and neither of us has hospitality experience. We’ve managed to make it work in Cairns with a dismal economy,” reveals Marlies.

Although one couple flew from WA to have a lunch at the caf_, the majority of customers are Cairns locals, some of whom eat not one but two meals a day at the venue: breakfast and lunch.

At the heart of the Paleo business is a diet based around our ancestors’ eating habits: vegetables, fruit and grass-fed meat form the basis of the diet, and it is free from grains, legumes and dairy products.

The couple came across the paleo diet through Kai’s crossfit gym around August 2011, and they began to adopt it a few months later when doctors uncovered their then four-month old son was severely intolerant to dairy.

The idea for a paleo caf_ emerged when the family began to realise how difficult it was to source paleo products and ingredients.

Former environmental lawyer Marlies told Franchising, “It was really hard to live this way and hard to eat out, we had to order ingredients from the US. Now we sell all these health foods.

“It’s important not to constrain the market though,” says Marlies, “So we offer dairy, soy and lactose free for our non-paleo customers.”

Franchisees can also suggest menu additions within the paleo diet, she says.

Adopting the key elements of the business is fundamental, but there’s no cookie-cutter approach here, insists Marlies. “Provided there are certain branding elements followed some things can be personalised to the franchise. Franchisees can work within the space they can secure.”

The couple is currently recruiting franchisees that are looking to invest between $150,000 and $350,000 and who are willing to devote at least five years to the business.

Franchisees will receive five days of training in the Cairns based store and for the first four days the franchisor will travel to the franchisees new business to provide them with guidance and support. 

The couple is looking for self-reliant franchisees who will take responsibility for their own businesses.

“We’re looking for people with a common sense approach to, and interest in, health, and a passion for helping people.”