Matthew Williams, General Manager, Property and Design, Foodco (Jamaica Blue and Muffin Break), joined us for a brief chat at the Brisbane Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo, October 2022.

We covered some of the key aspects of the Jamaica Blue franchise business on this occasion including the type of people that are best suited, what he loves about the business, and any common misconceptions about the brand or industry, and more…

What is your business?

"Our business is Jamaica Blue Café. 

So offering exceptional espresso coffee along with unique contemporary café favourites

Where are you located?

We’re located in seven countries. So we're in Australia and New Zealand, China, Singapore, Malaysia, the UAE and the UK. 

What do you love about the business and what you do?

Jamaica Blue I love because there's an ability to be creative and tailor your menu to local environments. 

So whilst we do have set cafe classics on our menu that a majority of cafes sell, we work with our franchise partners to enable them to tailor their menus to the local customer base and the local climate, just to ensure they're able to maximise their sales and give their customers exactly what they want. 

Coupled with three varieties of espresso coffee, our signature blend, our single origin, and then our Blue Mountain coffee, gives us a really unique platform and offer to take to market.

What do you look for in the right-fit person to be a franchise owner?

The best fit for Jamaica Blue, again, need to be someone who's willing to work hard, are very passionate about their business, and cafes are a social hub, so very much want to be part of the local community. 

But at the same time we are looking for people who have a flair and a love of food, and who are willing to spend that extra time and put that extra love into the dishes that they're creating for their customers, just to make sure that every plate that goes out is served exceptionally, and that they're really looking after their customers and growing their business. 

What’s a common misconception you believe people have about your brand or niche?

The common misconception would be around the name Jamaica Blue.

What that is, it's all about coffee. The Jamaica Blue Mountains are one of the finest coffee growing regions in the world. And that's where we take our namesake from, from serving great coffee. 

We do have some contemporary Jamaican food dishes that we serve, but we're not a Jamaican cafe. We're a contemporary café with excellent coffee and great food. 

What would be your advice for people looking to get into their own business?

The key to going into business or buying any franchise, do your research. 

Talk to existing operators who are working in that same business. Ask the tough questions. Ask them what they really enjoy and what the hardest parts are. And also you make sure you talk to them about their financial performance and get benchmark figures if they're willing to share those with you. 

And very important to get accounting and legal advice before you enter into any business venture. 

What is your key focus for the next 12-18 months?

The key focus, we’re actually working on a redesign of our cafés and we've got a very unique design at the moment, but that's we've opened around 90 cafes in that look and feel. 

So we want to update that, as well as enhancing our digital platforms. We're doing a lot of business through online ordering with the Uber Eats and the MenuLogs of this world, and we really want to capitalise on that. 

And also looking at new blends to sell through our single origin range just to ensure that our coffee story and our coffee offer remains the best in the market."