November 2024
The global Acai and healthy fast-food brand is bringing the power of the super berry to the UK public through rapid expansion propelled by F&B collaborations, and alliances with top sporting events.
The old adage is being judged by the company you keep. For OAKBERRY, its association with iconic sporting events, like Superbowl, US Open and F1, through F1 Team Haas has been a masterful one, and a key factor in raising the profile of the powerful antioxidant Acai-based smoothies, pushing it to be one of the UK’s fastest growing F&B names.
Since launching their first two London sites last summer in Rathbone Place and Portobello Road, with the help of GCW, the brand is now on track to open up to 15 new stores by the end of the year, and double that in 2025.
“Between Central London, where we want to concentrate our growth, and Greater London, there’s potential for up to 50 stores over five years,” says Peter Davies, OAKBERRY operations director. A veteran of the F&B sector, Davies has a background working as national retail operations director, Starbucks, COO at Harris + Hoole, and operations consultant at McDonald's.
He adds: “We have mapped out the UK into 12 regions and are looking to approach the expansion with equity and franchise partnerships with multi-site operators from Scotland to Central, and Greater London, and out to the west.”
This summer, several more branches, averaging between 300 sq ft to 750 sq ft, started trading including West One Bond Street Station, London Fitzrovia, Bristol, and Birmingham Bullring. These added to the international tally of 700 plus stores in 43 countries opened since first being established in 2016 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Given its tropical birthplace, associations with being a summer-only food, was something Davies needed to change. “When I joined the business, part of my feedback around being in the UK, was its positioning as a summer product, and a treat product.
“We’re always looking to innovate and try things in this country that may not necessarily be relevant for other parts of OAKBERRY.”
One solution was doing marketing with people in woolly hats enjoying the smoothies, another is working on different ways to transport the cool concoctions, such as using ice packs wrapped around the bowl to maintain temperature through delivery, which makes up circa 30% of the business.
These are being trialled in the Battersea store. OAKBERRY has also introduced coffee, to its core demographics of 20 to 35 year old females, through partnering with Caravan Coffee Roasters.
A further collaboration is with Jenki Matcha, the high-grade green tea superfood ground into powder, that will be mixed into the Acai bowls. Jenki uses ceremonial grade products from Uji, Japan, and has two of its own ‘Matcha Bars’ in Spitalfields, and Selfridges, Oxford Street.
Ironically, spreading the message of Acai and educating the UK public to the health benefits of the fruit, is getting a helping hand from the likes of Pret and Joe & The Juice, who are both doing versions of the Acai bowl.
“From our perspective, education about the product and it’s benefit is good for us,” but, Davies adds, OAKBERRY are “definitely market leaders, and premium in the marketplace.”
A major difference from its rivals is preparation of the bowls. Rather than using frozen scooping, the chain invests in an additional piece of equipment, running the Acai through a machine, resulting in a softer sorbet, making it easier to eat, and mix: “In our bowls you can see the clear layers. That is a brand standard, and it’s part of what sets us apart from competitors.”
New sites are secured through the partnership with GCW, who were approached due to their town centre specialist reputation, and strong team, including Will Mabbett, director, Callum Stephenson, associate director, and graduate surveyor Octavia Wyatt. “[There] is a great understanding of the brand within the GCW team. I probably talk to Will more than I do my fiancé! It’s a good partnership,” says Davies.
That level of communication is important as continued expansion relies on, “a mix of being strategic, and opportunity driven. Strategically we know where we want to be, when we want to do it,” says Davies, who credits GCW with being, “very well connected, with a good geographical knowledge across the UK.”
Mabbett adds: “Following successful recent openings, the brand are more confident than ever about their expansion here.”
And Davies knows they are introducing something special. With that, he harps back to his old employer, Starbucks: “Without a doubt, Starbucks was the first brand to bring coffee – we didn’t drink many lattes, cappuccino’s 20 years ago before they entered the UK, and they took market share and expanded very quickly.”
When Davies left the company in March 2017, it had 1,000 UK sites – a phenomenal number, and the same amount OAKBERRY is touted to have by the end of the year worldwide.
And to expand in such a way takes dedication in what you believe, and long-term commitment to get results, as Starbucks, now with over 1,300 stores, and a 2023 revenue of £547.7m, has experienced.
With the same expansion mentality and application of its Lifestyle, Community, and Health mantra, for OAKBERRY it will undoubtedly be on track for similar successful and ongoing growth.
Recent Deals
OAKBERRY have opened a plethora of new branches in the last few months, averaging between 300 sq ft to 750 sq ft. These were at Birmingham, Bristol, Westfield London, West One Bond Street Station, and Hammersmith.