It all began in 1967.
That was when Amarjit Singh Tibb chanced upon the Middle Eastern staple — pita bread — in Beirut, and was floored. Enamoured by the concept of breads packed with wonderfully seasoned meats, back in India, he along with his co-founder and wife, Surinder Kaur Tibb, began innovating and creating wheat rolls (chapattis) stuffed with a variety of fillings — from vegetables to meats.
The brand name “Tibb’s Frankie” was actually christened in 1969, representing an innovative combination of juicy Indian gravy, vegetables, and an in-house “Secret Masala” wrapped in a wheat roll.
Now headed by scions Harpreet Singh Tibb (popularly known as HST) and Jasmit Singh Tibb along with strategic business partner Vikas Khemani, Tibb’s Frankie has served over 120 million rolls in its 55 years of existence and is adding 20 stores each year post-COVID. And most importantly, it is in sync with the times.
HST tells us how legacy brands’ longevity depends on their ability to keep their ears on the ground, and really listen.
- Change is constant
“Today the twin pillars of economic prosperity and digital disruption are impacting consumer behaviour in a way never seen before and brands including legacy brands need to continuously evolve their business models and strategies. Until a few years ago, we as a brand were not online, but today we have evolved our business model to deliver a great experience to consumers in stores and online. Time is the most precious commodity and hence consumers are always seeking quicker preparation time. At metros, we reinvented our processes to serve a Tibb’s Frankie roll in less than 2-3 mins.”
Never play with the quality of your food or product in the short term to manage profitability. While we drive cost optimization programs, we never tinker with our food quality.
2. Quality first. Profitability follows
“With inflationary food trends one is always faced with the challenge of profitability. Never play with the quality of your food or product in the short term to manage profitability. At Tibb’s Frankie, consistent food quality is our no.1 priority and even today we serve the same tasty food that we were serving in 1969. We have taken price increases as much as 50% in a year on 1-2 items to ensure we serve the same quality protein in our food. While we drive cost optimization programs, we never tinker with our food quality.”
3. Drive innovations while remaining true to your core attribute
“At Tibb’s Frankie, great taste is at the heart of all our actions and innovations. Every new product innovation must pass the “taste test”. We have recently launched ProtiRoti, range of 100% plant protein based rolls to address the consumer need for healthy nutritious food. We have launched these in great exciting flavours such as Tandoori Tikka, Chettina Sukha, Bhuna, Lassooni and Hariyali and our consumers have loved us for developing tasty and healthy food options for them. In fact, at plant protein and vegan forums, consumers and stakeholders are surprised that plant protein food can also be tasty. A great win for us.”
