Buying a business just before her 21st birthday turned out to be the best gift Akankssha Taneja Sandhu could have asked for.

“I was 20 when we started training, and had just turned 21 when I opened the doors to my first Oporto store,” Akankssha remembers.

And it took all her courage to make the leap into business ownership, she admits.

“I was nervous. Taking the leap from being an employee to running a business is a huge financial and emotional decision. I questioned whether I would succeed; I had a big responsibility on my shoulders and a lot of people to feed,” she explains.

Akankssha and her father bought the business together, but it was Akankssha and her mother who would train and operate the store, working 10-hour days, side-by-side.

Akankssha’s Oporto experience began in year 10

While the fledgling franchisee was anxious about success, she was no stranger to the Oporto brand; in fact, she had developed a real passion for the brand, its systems and the head office team. 

The Portugese-style, flame-grilled chicken brand has a robust strategy and a distinct niche in the market, Akankssa says.

She began working at Oporto 16 as a front of house member while studying in year 10, continued to work shifts through her commerce and accounting degree and was promoted to store manager. 

When she graduated in 2014, she took a job as an auditor with a hotel group.

It didn’t last long – but only because her entrepreneurial spirit soared when her former franchisee boss asked if she wanted to buy his business.

“In the back of my mind, I saw so much flexibility in running your own business. My dad had run his own timber and construction business in India, so entrepreneurship is in my blood. When the franchisee called me up about buying the store, my eyes lit up!” Akankssa says.

She was excited about the opportunity to buy an Oporto at such a young age, and is grateful for the backing and support from her parents that allowed her to kickstart the franchisee adventure.

“I was nervous but I knew if I waited until I was 100 per cent ready, it might never happen,” she says.

“I knew the brand and the operations and had the work ethic to work out what I didn’t know. I’m so proud I didn’t let my nerves got the best of me.”

As a young new business owner Akankssa found the outstanding admin support from head office to be invaluable.

Oporto is part of the Craveable Brands stable of fast food chicken brands.

“From the Craveable CEO to our business consultant, everyone is just a call away. Their franchise support is uncommon and it sets them apart,” she says.

High volume drive-thru stores the way forward

Akankssa took over the Penrith Westfield food court store in 2015. Within two years she had purchased her second restaurant, a shopfront in Glenmore Park, and in 2019 opened a drive-thru in Penrith, giving her a competitive edge in the area.

Akankssha’s first taste of the high volume drive-thru format convinced her this was the path she wanted to follow and she then purchased the Plumpton restaurant.

She has embraced the challenges of building a collaborative and high-performing team – with two stores she has a team of almost 100 employees.

“It’s been really rewarding to grow to this level. I feel working in big volume stores, with all the business initiatives and improvements, is exciting. I’m putting in a lot of effort and it leads to a bigger impact.”

Akankssa now owns two of the top five high-volume Oporto restaurants and she’s far from finished. At 32 she has big ambitions.

“I want to expand my portfolio, acquire more stores or develop greenfields,” she says. 

Oporto is now a family affair

Her enthusiasm for the brand spread in the family: her brother is a business partner in Penrith, and owns the Dubbo and Orange restaurants.

“My Dad is a business partner in Penrith, Dubbo and Orange. My husband Naavneet and I own the Plumpton drive-thru,” Akankssha explains.

Naavneet is another enthusiastic Oporto ambassador, working with the brand since 2006. It is thanks to the chicken brand the couple met.

“We got married after I bought my first drive-thru. My husband and I eat and breathe Oporto!” Akankssha says.

The couple find with two small children, the flexibility of the franchise is now a highly-prized benefit. 

“The financial advantages are the icing on the cake,” Akankssa says. 

“When I reflect on my journey, can’t believe I had the courage to have such a big investment and run the restaurant and be financially rewarded.

“I was in the brand for so long and it gave me my first taste of the real world, and then a chance to step up and make a business for myself. Oporto is a remarkable brand, it’s been wonderful,” she says.