Johannesburg - Gold Brands, which listed on the JSE’s AltX in February, says Ocean Basket’’s former CEO Manny Nichas, has joined the board of one of its units.
Gold Brands, which owns the Chesa Nyama fast food franchise, says Nichas will oversee the franchising side of the business. He joins as joins as CEO of Franchising to Africa, a 100 percent-owned subsidiary.
Nichas has spent more than 20 years in the food industry building franchises like Ocean Basket, with noteworthy achievements including expansion to international markets like Cyprus and Dubai.
“One of my first business ventures was owning a BlackSteer steakhouse, so in a way, my journey has almost come full circle. I’m tremendously excited to get to work. These brands have incredible potential and a bright future in the country; they represent a massively untapped market which I look forward to exploring further,” says Nichas.
The company acquired the Blacksteer brand last March and, so far, 19 new Blacksteer stores have been opened.
Nichas’ primary role will be to oversee the franchising side of the business, where he is tasked with expanding the growth and profitability of the stores as well as strengthening relationships both internally and externally, which he believes is one of the key factors in the franchising business. “The strength of your relationships indicates the strength of your business,” says Nichas.
In its recent maiden results, it reported R8.9 million in profit from R235.5 million revenue for the year to February, while basic earnings a share and headline earnings a share were 10.25c, respectively. No dividend was declared.
Gold Brands, which started in 2012 with one Chesa Nyama at Wits University in Johannesburg, has grown into a franchise chain of more than 300 stores across five brands.
IOL