Chaiiwala has appointed Ben Clayton (pictured above) as its new Chief Operating Officer (COO).
In his new role, Clayton will oversee operations across the brand’s franchise network, focusing on improving performance, supporting franchise partners, and driving profitability.
Clayton joins the company from Splendid Restaurants, part of the Splendid Hospitality Group, where he was Managing Director overseeing 38 franchised KFC outlets across northern England.
Prior to this, he spent almost ten years at TGI Fridays in a series of senior operational positions, including Senior Director of Restaurant Excellence, managing teams and projects across 60 countries.
His previous experience also includes leadership roles at Papa John’s UK and internationally.
Chaiiwala currently runs more than 130 branches worldwide and plans to expand to at least 500 through franchising over the next decade.
Ben Clayton, Chief Operating Officer at Chaiiwala, said: “I am super excited to be joining Chaiiwala as COO. Muhummed, Sohail, Mustafa and Abdul have built a fantastic business that champions the delicious and authentic flavours of Indian street food and karak chaii and – in just 10 years – have scaled it to more than 130 locations globally.
As more consumers look at the world beyond coffee, pizza and burgers, I see a huge opportunity to continue building this brand and delivering strong results for our franchised partners. I can’t wait to get going!”
Muhummed Ibrahim, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Chaiiwala, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Ben Clayton to Chaiiwala. In this role, we have someone who brings unrivalled experience on both sides of franchising that can help us continue evolving our internal practices and – ultimately – realise the global potential of our brand.
We genuinely believe that Chaiiwala can become the global leader in Indian street food. We have a fantastic brand and customer proposition that is making traditional Indian flavours more accessible at all dayparts, a proven operating model, and growing and equally ambitious franchise network.”
He added: “Ben will help us continue driving forward with even more momentum, ensuring that we continue winning with our customers and franchisees as we scale. I look forward to working with him for years to come.”
