Three Franchising Strategies: Turks Shawarma’s Recipe for Growth

In the dynamic world of franchising, few stories inspire innovation and resilience as Turks Shawarma. From its humble beginnings to becoming a dominant force in the food cart industry, Turks has exemplified how bold strategies and commitment to simplicity can propel a business toward exponential growth. For aspiring franchisors, this success story offers a wealth of actionable insights on how to franchise your business effectively.

The Turks Journey: From Humble Beginnings to Market Leader

Founded on the timeless allure of the doner (shawarma), Turks began as a modest food cart. By 2015, it launched its franchise program, and in just two years, Turks expanded to over 400 outlets—a meteoric rise that captured the attention of both the food industry and potential franchisees. This rapid growth was underpinned by streamlined operations, strong branding, and an unwavering focus on delivering a high-quality product. 

Turks, now with 600+ branches here in the Philippines and abroad, has transformed the doner, a street food staple, into a sought-after franchise by utilizing top-tier marketing, including celebrity endorsements, TV advertisements, and billboard campaigns. These efforts, combined with a simplified franchise model, demonstrated that a business doesn’t have to be overly complex to achieve success at scale.

For franchisors, examining Turks’ success offers strategies to emulate and pitfalls to avoid. Here are three critical tips from their journey.

Strategies for Franchisors: Lessons from Turks Shawarma

1. Simplify Your Business Model

One of Turks’ most significant decisions was to focus on simplicity. Their menu prioritizes a few core products—delicious shawarmas—rather than overwhelming consumers with an extensive, complex menu. By leveraging streamlined processes and limited SKUs, Turks ensured ease of replication for franchisees, a critical factor for scalability.

• Key Takeaway: Simplification is foundational in franchising. A franchise business must be teachable, replicable, and easy for new entrepreneurs to adopt. Whether you’re in the food or retail industry, simplifying offerings and processes increases the likelihood of consistent quality and operational efficiency across your franchise network.

2. Invest in Branding and Marketing

Turks didn’t just rely on its product to grow—it invested heavily in brand perception. With bold campaigns utilizing celebrity endorsements and varied media platforms, Turks established itself as a recognizable and aspirational brand. Even as a new franchisor, it wasn’t afraid to allocate resources to visibility.

• Key Takeaway: Brand-building is an uncompromising aspect of franchising success. For new franchisors, creating a memorable and trustworthy brand ensures your franchise stands out in competitive markets. A strong brand not only attracts customers but also appeals to potential franchisees who see value in your reputation.

3. Think Win-Win-Win

Borrowing a page from Stephen Covey’s celebrated “7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” Turks embodies the principle of “Think Win-Win.” They structured their franchise business to provide value for all stakeholders—franchisees, customers, and the brand itself. Turks continually ensures that their franchisees receive adequate support, training, and marketing resources.

• Key Takeaway: Franchising is a partnership. As a franchisor, nurturing franchisee success is non-negotiable. Transparent communication, adequate operational support, and aligned incentives reinforce trust and ensure long-term franchise relationships flourish.

Don’t Skip the Basics of Franchise Readiness

While Turks exemplifies success, it’s important to acknowledge that franchising isn’t a fast track to growth for every business. To be able to ensure that their business is “franchise-ready”, Franchisors should:

1. Assess whether their systems are replicable and scalable.

2. Identify a unique selling proposition (USP) that differentiates them from competitors. This can include superior product quality, pricing strategies, or customer convenience.

3. Test their concept thoroughly before launching a franchise program. Franchising too early, or without proper systems, can be as detrimental as waiting too long.

Building a Franchise That Lasts

Turks Shawarma’s journey from one food cart to hundreds of outlets is a testament to the power of focused business strategies and bold decision-making. For aspiring franchisors, the key lessons lie in the simplification of operations, investment in branding, and fostering mutually beneficial relationships with franchisees.

Success in franchising is not determined by ambition alone but by disciplined execution of strategies that prioritize scalability, consistency, and long-term partnerships. As Turks has shown, with the right approach, even a humble food cart can become an industry powerhouse.

Ready to embrace the challenge of franchising? Start by asking how you can make your business model teachable, replicable, and scalable. Whether you’re in food, retail, or another industry, success isn’t about complexity—it’s about simplicity done with precision.

Do you want to know if you’re ready to franchise your business? Take this free franchisability test or attend the “How to Franchise Your Business” seminar. Visit this link for more information.