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South Africans Robert Brozin, Fernando Duarte share anecdotes from the chain’s incredible journey since the chain was founded in 1987 and opened in the country in 2002
Photo by Shihab
The origin backstory of the multinational restaurant chain Nando’s, which specialises in flame-roasted PERi-PERi chicken and celebrates its 20th anniversary in the UAE, has taken on mythical proportions and sometimes shrouded in mystery around the globe.
Whether it originated in the United Kingdom (UK), Portugal, South Africa, or the deepest and darkest PERi-PERi heartland in southern Africa, Mozambique, with strong Portuguese influence, questions abound.
origin
Nando’s was founded in South Africa in 1987 by Robert Brozin and Fernando Duarte. The two became lifelong friends, working at Robert’s father’s electronics company, Fernando and Robert as technical and marketing managers, respectively. Fernando is from Porto, Portugal, his family moved to South Africa and spent five years in Mozambique.
In 1987, Fernando took Robert to Chickenland, a chicken restaurant in Rosettenville, Johannesburg. Robert was so impressed with the restaurant’s turkey chicken that he suggested they buy the restaurant. They managed to buy the restaurant despite the financial situation against them.
The restaurant was later named after Fernando, affectionately known as Nando by his friends and family. Since its inception, Nando’s has adopted its slogan that it’s more than just chicken. The bird is a staple on the menu and embodies five core values - Pride, Passion, Courage, Integrity and Family – that have allowed the brand to grow organically on five continents over the past 35 years.
Celebrating 20 years in the UAE
Fernando and Robert, who were in Dubai last week to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Nando’s in the UAE, remained wide-eyed since their first visit to the country.
“I was in Dubai even before Emirates was established in October 1985,” Fernando said, recalling those turbulent years in South Africa.
Robert, a stubborn South African, confronted those difficult times. “South Africa was in the midst of change. It was a tough time. It was a time of uncertainty about the future. It was almost crazy to start a business at the time. But we persevered. We started this business with Hopefully, South Africa will pick itself up.”
“South Africa is a miracle country because it has the most incredible people. The people of South Africa are incredible people. So when we started, we supported the fact that South Africa was going to be a democracy. For every South African , there will be a new South Africa. The old country will collapse and a new South Africa will emerge. Then, on February 11, 1990, Nelson Mandela was released. That was an important moment in world history. Later, we made A new constitution, the most inclusive and liberal constitution in the world,” said Robert.
global success
Nando’s global success is due in large part to the “amazing chemistry” of the two lifelong friends, who were “naturally matched, and the synergy of a shared vision overwhelmed business considerations.”
The articulate Robert is paired with the taciturn Fernando, who credits “a long and immersive journey to the values that have bound us together over the years”.
Meeting of great minds
Robert was quick to compare the success of the Nando brand to the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. “His Highness has a vision of diversity. If you look at the vision of what is happening in Dubai today, it reflects what is enshrined in our constitution…I always felt that there was a strong similarity between Mandela’s vision and His Highness’s vision. “
He compared the UAE, a melting pot of more than 200 different ethnic groups, to his native South Africa, a rainbow nation with 11 official languages. “Just like the UAE, we believe everyone welcomes Nando’s. Dubai has created a near-ideal world where people from different backgrounds can come together to create successful businesses. This is South Africa bringing people together to create something better vision,” he added.
Fernando says the brand’s ethos “resonates particularly well in Dubai, even though we’re working with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) in the region first”.
He added: “Looking back, KSA taught us a lot about Arabic culture when we were a young brand. That’s when we met Suhail (Gidwani), Chairman and CEO of Nando’s UAE. Because it was an exchange of ideas, Suhail’s vision matched ours and a new relationship was established.”
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Robert felt the brand had arrived when he was at London’s Heathrow Airport in the early 1990s. “The customs officer asked me at the airport where I work? I said Nando’s. He said to me which Nando’s do you work? I replied that I work in Hounslow. He seemed quite excited to hear the news. “
“Our global resonance starts in the UK, although we have yet to expand to continental Europe,” he said.
Fernando recalled his memories and came up with a more local experience. “An American diner came to our restaurant in Johannesburg and asked impatiently how long it would take us to serve the roast chicken? Americans told each other that these people will never live because customers can’t wait 27 minutes for their food Roast chicken. I felt like it was a huge learning curve and we worked on it in terms of time and brought it down significantly,” he said.
face the challenge
Robert scoffed at the daunting proposal.
“It’s always a good challenge when your opposition says you’re going to go out of business,” he added, “you never threaten an entrepreneur that you’re going to go out of business.”
Also, some skeptics told them not to touch the bottled sauce “because that was a contrarian at the time”. Today, however, Nando’s sauces are featured in all major supermarkets where the restaurant brand exists.
Nando’s brazen advertising, various social commentary, and South Africans’ uncanny ability to laugh at themselves despite increasing challenges has been making them stand out in all markets for years.
“Our cash crunch made us irreverent and we tried to grab as many eyeballs as possible,” said Robert. Also, in those days, there was no social media, just plain print, radio and outdoor advertising. “We needed to be cheeky, We need to stand out, we need to be different. So, we need value for money. We need to be different from our competitors with huge budgets. This is an important factor in this day and age and in the hustle and bustle. Content is still king. “
Core competencies are the key
Will Nando’s add fish to the menu?
“Nando’s core competency is its core competency, and if we can develop Nando’s quality options through our new product development team, plant-based chicken could be an option,” Fernando said.
He added: “Nando’s is a chicken brand. If we were to consider other protein products within our group, it would be a new concept. A lot of people still don’t know the history and lineage of PERi-PERi sauce. Special chilies from South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi energize the sauce,” Fernando said.
Nando’s menu, at the end of the day, is all about “pleasant, tiny tweaks.” Fernando credits it to the local teams in each region, which are “the ultimate arbiters of tweaking our menu and have been playing with fire,” adding, “We want to stay true to our core.”
no cookie-cutter feeling
Robert echoed Fernando. “We’ve never been a cookie-cutter chain. So, for example, every restaurant has a different feel, every store has a different look. So, in the UK, we have Mushy peas. Pea paste is a British thing, but In South Africa, no one knows them as well as in the UAE, and we have hummus, pita bread and PERi-PERi drizzle.
“We’re always exploring, but never too far from the core. For example, we have original art in our restaurants and each of our stores has a different design. We have a project called Nando’s Young Hot Designer Campaign where we encourage young Designers come up with innovative ideas,” he said.
In the brand’s 35-year history, 1,200 stores on five continents are not economies of scale because the spirit is to “change and move people’s lives”.
Dubai is the epicenter of the brand’s phenomenal global success, which Robert explicitly acknowledges.
“Every time I come to Dubai; I am blown away. I am shocked. Dubai delivers on its promise. I always come to Dubai and be inspired. When I leave Dubai, I am inspired by the art of what is possible,” he said .
Strong franchise partners add weight to this iconic brand
Nando’s emergence as the largest fine-casual dining chain in the UAE against the backdrop of the intense Covid-19 challenges would not have been possible without Suhail Gidwani, Chairman and CEO of Nando’s UAE.
The low-key Gidwani, affectionately known as SG by his 500-plus employees, remains confident in the brand when the going gets tough as the virus outbreak wreaks the most havoc on the restaurant (food and beverage) industry.
SG, reluctant to publicize, is confident in his home country. “During the pandemic, we believe in the UAE’s ability to persevere and emerge from the crisis unscathed. Our confidence in our nation’s leadership and their vision is paying off handsomely today,” he said.
He added: “Looking back over the past 20 years, we have grown organically with the City of Dubai and the UAE to the delight of our customers. I am confident that we will continue to play with fire and exceed expectations for the next 20 years.”
Nando’s UAE Managing Director (MD) George Kunnappally agreed with SG’s idea. “2022 is likely to be our best year since launching in Dubai 20 years ago, as there are 20 restaurants in the UAE employing 20 different countries,” he said.
He backs up his assertions with data.
“For example, we broke into the big leagues with the opening of our flagship stores in the Dubai Mall and the Mall of the Emirates (MoE) in November 2019 and January 2020. We launched Espetada A Torre and took Nando’s by storm. We It’s the XL version of Espetada that our audiences are used to and conceived by SG themselves,” he added.
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