The food franchise culture has been around for decades, and year after year, these franchisees try to one-up each other by introducing new recipes and regional specialty dishes. Does the question arise that is competition only the thing that will be consistent in this volatile market? Are food franchisees losing their essence in this cut-throat market? Though it seems to be a pattern for several years, one franchisee who understands and resembles the famous quote, “A family that eats together, stays together,” is Roll’d.
The Roll’d menu offers a wide variety of Vietnamese family favourites, all deeply embedded in culture, with the very fabric of its existence is based on kinship. The franchise believes in connecting with its customers by embracing its heritage in everything that it does.
Roll’d was incepted by Bao Hoang when he thought about sharing the traditional Vietnamese cuisine with the world. He leads Roll’d as the CEO and Founder and utilizes his market expertise and years of experience, which he practices in the very centre of the culture at Roll’d.
A Thought Turned into Franchise
Bao opened the first Roll’d Vietnamese store in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD in 2012, with his cousin, Tin Ly, and friend Ray Esquires.
With zero hospitality experience, they started with a menu of two items – rice paper rolls “soldiers” and traditional Vietnamese phở noodle soup. It soon grew to include bánh mì (Vietnamese baguettes), bún (noodle salad) and gỏi (salad), each made using the same recipes that Bao’s mother, Phien, and his aunties would prepare for the family.
Over the years, Bao would watch people (including his kids) walk around eating sushi rolls which made him think about how great it would be if they were eating Vietnamese rice paper rolls. Bao wanted fresh Vietnamese to become the go-to option for Australians and shape how Australians interacted with Vietnamese food and culture.
Bao states that now, having opened over 100 Roll’d Vietnamese stores nationwide, and the Grab-and-Go range and FMCG products in Coles supermarkets nationwide and international expansion on the horizon, Roll’d is as strong as ever.
In addition to furthering the connection between Vietnamese food and culture and the Australian customer, Bao is also looking forward to expanding Roll’d into the international market across the USA, New Zealand, Ireland, Japan, and the UK.
A Unique Way of Conducting Business
Bao expresses that Roll’d Vietnamese is one of the few genuine family businesses that have remained passionate about traditional Vietnamese recipes and culture. It is also one of Australia’s few healthy takeaway food franchises, offering fresh, transportable, affordable food to Australian families.
The flexible business models and store formats allow Roll’d to adapt their franchise to accommodate the needs of the local geographical area.
The new Grab-and-Go range is a prime example of how Roll’d offers healthy takeaway options at convenient customer touchpoints. All Grab-and-Go meals are prepared and packaged at local Roll’d Vietnamese kiosks and street-fronted stores before being delivered daily to supermarkets. It directly benefits every Roll’d Vietnamese store and is designed to future-proof revenue for current and prospective franchise owners by providing additional revenue streams.
To further strengthen the franchisee offering Roll’d have welcomed new Catering options and Grazing Bundles. Australian’s emerging from lockdown will be able to pick up a fresh Roll’d Grazing Bundle from their local Roll’d store and enjoy socializing with family and friends over fresh and healthy Vietnamese.
Grazing Bundles and Catering includes a range of meal options, available in store and via the Roll’d app, customers can pick up their choice of mixed Soldiers, Banh Mis, Bao Buns and Sweet Potato fries, with vegetarian or vegan boxes available.
Optimistic Approach in Unprecedented Times
Despite the ongoing and significant economic, political, and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Roll’d remained optimistic for the future and the recovery of the Australian food & hospitality sector, expressed Bao.
Bao has taken actions to secure the future of Roll’d and minimize the negative impacts of the pandemic on the business. During this time, retaining staff and staff recruitment has been a top priority for Roll’d. It believes thought leadership and workplace culture have enabled Roll’d to power ahead throughout the pandemic.
Innovation, flexibility, and adaptability are a few of the essential characteristics of the Roll’d business models: it offers four varieties of Roll’d store models for prospective franchisees to choose from. These are kiosks, street-fronted stores, concessions within supermarkets, and the Roll’d Runner (Roll’d food truck). Each operates alongside Roll’d’s growing omnichannel, including Grab-and-Go pre-packaged range and FMCG collection found in Coles Supermarkets nationwide.
A Value-Driven Culture
Bao wants all members of the Roll’d family to feel purposeful and share in the vision of becoming a household name for sustainably delivering innovation in food and business. The ‘Me Values’ and ‘We Values’ of Roll’d are the guidelines designed to support its staff within the business and beyond.
Its ‘Me Values’ include love and respect for good intentions, maintaining integrity to embrace positive growth, leaning into truth, and being compassionate in problem-solving.
‘We Values’ are the unique Roll’d values that will help the franchise succeed in its vision and purpose.
Roll’d encourages his employees to be bold, fuel the entrepreneurial spirit, make tough decisions, and turn dreams into reality. It strives to create meaningful relationships by making connections, not transactions.
“Being a part of the Roll’d family means owning your part and valuing self-discipline and self-drive for the good of the team. We are hustlers. We stay hungry and love to find opportunities each and every day,” asserts Bao.
A Helping Hand to the Community
Bao says, “To us, family is everything. This is why we place such value on maintaining traditions, establishing strong relationships with our staff and franchisees.” Bao’s Roll’d family extends across many local, national, and international communities. Without the mutual support of these individuals and businesses, Roll’d wouldn’t be the way it is today.
Roll’d is a strong believer in getting involved in the community and giving back. It is the proud sponsor of the Melbourne United basketball team, the Melbourne Rebels super rugby team, and a range of local sporting groups supporting young Australian kids in sport.
Bao is dedicated to making a positive impact in his home country by providing life essentials to thousands of Vietnamese children and families. He is proud to provide resources and connections to assist several reputable charities in enacting positive change.
Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation is an Australian-run charity that rescues children in crisis. To support this important work, Bao regularly organizes fundraising events and contributes. To date, Roll’d have raised over $200,000 for various Blue Dragon projects.
Bao believes that food is the future. It is a gateway to mutual respect and understanding of culture. He is proud to support KOTO – ‘Know One, Teach One,’ a unique, not-for-profit culinary training center built on the idea that knowledge is there to be shared. KOTO gives at-risk youth the chance to escape a crushing poverty cycle through culinary skills and education.
Roll’d also supports One Plate. On selected menu items, $1 is donated to One Plate every time customers order. 100% of the donations go directly towards funding sustainable food projects in developing countries.
Undertakings to Expand the Franchise
Roll’d Vietnamese is greatly invested in the success of its franchisees. Bao attributes this success to the strong support from the inception of the partnership. Every Roll’d franchise receives a personalized 8-week training plan from groundwork to management, covering all the skills needed to run a successful Roll’d store.
Roll’d uses Go1, an online training platform with 28 interactive web-based modules. The system includes Standard Operation Procedures, How-To Guides, Culture Guides, Benefits and Policies, Management, and team member workbooks, and more. Further to this, Roll’d offers its franchisees ongoing training and extensive post-store opening support.
Bao adds that each franchisee is partnered with an Area Manager, a dedicated leader is responsible for the stores’ development, growth, and profitability. Combining comprehensive tools with a hands-on training approach, the Area Manager helps to maximize operations and support the new store owners at a grassroots level.
All Roll’d franchisees are also offered strong marketing support customized to the local community.
Leveraging Technology to Keep It Rolling
In 2020, Bao rolled out the PREPsafe system to improve kitchen efficiency and provide his staff with simple and effective solutions to compliance and labeling. He states that accurate food labeling is one of the most menial yet crucial tasks for any QSR. Improper labeling can cost QSR’s a lot of money due to food waste and inefficient stock management. It can also lead to risking noncompliance with safety and hygiene protocols.
The PREPsafe system of Roll’d is consistent and simple. It ensures that each kitchen item is accounted for and stock is always rotated, which helps ease the pressures around store operating and EHO visits. As the franchise is pushing towards growing exponentially and HACCP certification, the system assists in achieving that goal.
Cooking Up a Brighter Future
In 2020, Bao revamped the business model to include better delivery options and more high street store locations, as Roll’d no longer relied on heavy foot traffic due to the pandemic. Its traditional stores relied on 90% of their sales to come through takeaway and dine in. The rise of contactless delivery in 2020 presented it with an opportunity to innovate its service.
In 2021 and 2022, Bao is taking things a step further and welcoming a massive transformation to his business model to elevate Roll’d Vietnamese to become a thriving business through omnichannel.
As Roll’d Vietnamese continues to expand, it is opening the business to include new revenue streams, including third-party delivery, Roll’d delivery, FMCG range of pantry items and condiments sold exclusively in Coles supermarkets, and B2B sales through the addition of grab-and-go in Coles, with plans to expand in other retailers, and through petrol and convenience channels.
Bao is also looking to expand the B2B offering into schools, local gyms, hospitals, and other venues. The franchise is reviving its Roll’d Runner to provide fresh and fast lunches to kids in the classroom and office staff when they return to work and providing more catering options for when it can gather again with friends, family, and colleagues. Roll’d is most excitedly furthering its relationship with Coles by launching its new satellite carts, the first of which has opened in Coles Camberwell, Victoria. The Roll’d cart staff will roll fresh Soldiers and sell pre-packaged Grab-and-Go meals for customers on the run.
Roll’d will launch its first international store in the USA, set to open in Utah in early 2022. For Roll’d Vietnamese, the future is about multiple revenue channels and supporting and future-proofing revenue for its current and prospective franchisees.
A Beacon of Hope
Bao advises up-and-coming entrepreneurs to read, research, network, work hard, and surround themselves with people who share values and who are on board with your vision. He says, “I’ve read many business books, and out of each one, I take at least one piece of advice I’ve been able to use. Not always in a life-changing way, but I believe even the littlest of things can change the course of your life.”
Bao suggests researching specific business aspirations and doesn’t leave it to chance. He adds, “Be proactive in seeking out people who can help you, and you’d be surprised how willing people are if you just ask. Sometimes that person can’t help you, but they’ll often redirect you to someone who will. The hardest thing to do in business is just to start, so take the leap! Stop procrastinating, making excuses, or waiting for the ideal scenario.”
“I’d also say to be mindful to look after your health. Another important lesson I’ve learned is not to assume that everyone will be willing to work as hard as you or make sacrifices. I’m very fortunate right now to have found some amazing people who are super dedicated and passionate about the business,” concludes Bao.
