In brewing up his Chaiiwala of London franchise, Shabar Jivraj’s story blends unprecedented challenges and remarkable successes
By Alya Somar
The Chaiiwala of London café franchise has grown globally in recent years, forging ahead from its humble beginnings in New Delhi, India in 1927. As of September 2021, Chaiiwala launched their first store in Ontario with the help of franchisee Shabar Jivraj.
Before joining the Chaiiwala team, Shabar had a career in financial services back home in the United Kingdom. After studying business management and human resources in university, he switched gears and went on to work in banking for 16 years after graduating. Later in life, he found himself trying another new venture in commercial and industrial property management. With a background in financial planning and property management, and a drive to try new things in the workplace, Chaiiwala of London master franchisors Shiraz Kothiwala and Ajmal Gundhra felt Shabar would be an ideal fit to help them bring Chaiiwala from the U.K. to the Canadian market.
Shabar had fantasized about owning a cafe and could immediately see Kothiwala and Gundhra’s passion to build a meaningful legacy through the Chaiiwala franchise. They believed that they could enrich the communities around them through their businesses and dedication. Shabar trusted in their vision and signed on as the head of operations in Ontario in 2020, before later switching things up once again and becoming a franchise owner himself.
When Shabar first joined the team, he put in months of preparation to open Ontario’s first Chaiiwala location in Scarbrough, a neighbourhood of Toronto. The location had no more than 12 seats, and from the moment they opened their location, they found themselves with lineups out the door and a thriving café they could be proud of. As business took off, Shabar found himself side by side with the employees, helping to make Chaii in the back of the store and serve customers in the front. With a taste for day-to-day operations, Shabar decided to leave his role as head of Ontario operations and become a franchise owner.
The rocky road
When Shabar shifted to being a franchise owner, he faced numerous challenges leading up to the opening of his Dixie and Eglinton location in Mississauga, Ontario. Construction started during the COVID-19 pandemic and work was halted multiple times due to government policies, setting back the projected timeline of their opening. Construction and labour costs skyrocketed as the pandemic remained an issue. Rent remained at a constant rate while Shabar and his team struggled against the rising costs just to open their doors to customers. Despite the uncertainty, everyone worked together to pull through and finally open the store in June 2022.
“Opening our Dixie location during the pandemic, with rising construction costs and so much uncertainty, felt nearly impossible,” Shabar shares. “Looking back, it’s incredible that we managed to open through such an adverse time. It truly felt like a miracle.”
A year into the pandemic, the entire restaurant industry was still suffering. Shabar acted quickly and shifted their business online to help them sustain their solid customer base despite lockdowns. This action, paired with government breaks for businesses, helped Shabar and his team stay afloat during the uncertain early days of his first location.
Another boost was found in a surprising addition to their marketing campaign. A simple road sign got the word out to customers at a competing business across the street. Folks would be in the competitor’s drive through line, see the Chaiiwala of London sign on the road, and leave the line to try them out instead. Shabar was pleasantly surprised that something as simple as a sign could help them compete with a bigger franchise that had been established in Canada longer than them. These kinds of unexpected results keep Shabar and his team motivated in their dedication to serving their community.
Steeped in collaboration
As a franchisee, Shabar values the unique qualities that every employee brings to the team. At his two locations, he’s taken on students, new Canadians, and everyone in between. He views his role as the boss as an opportunity to help each individual grow and thrive through the workplace and believes in supporting his team as closely as possible. His hands-on approach to the day-to-day needs of the business is just one of many ways he’s there for his employees.
On any given day, Shabar can be found checking in on the store sales statistics and crunching data at all times of the day. He sees himself as any other part of the team and enjoys working regular shifts at both his Mississauga and Vaughan locations, making Chaii one day and scrubbing toilets the next. Working so closely with his employees allows him to get to know them on a personal level, so that he can understand how to better serve their needs as a boss. This has led to a low turnover rate at his franchises, which he takes a great deal of pride in, cheering on several of the employees at his Mississauga location who have remained with him since those first, challenging days of the franchise.
“When you see the owner of your location, who owns two stores, cleaning the bathrooms: what does that do to you as an individual? As an employee?” Shabar asks.
He goes the extra mile to give back to the communities his franchises are built in. At multiple Chaiiwala locations, Shabar has seen the other local businesses around him thrive as a result of their cafés opening. Local clothing retailers, shisha lounges, vape shops, and restaurants have all come over to his locations to share what a positive impact the cafés have had on their businesses. An increase in foot traffic to their areas have led to increased sales for the entire ecosystem of businesses around them.
This impact is something that Shabar and his team take great pride in. Building community and creating opportunities for the people around them is what he dreamed of doing through the Chaiiwala franchises, and he is seeing his goal play out in real time. “We try and maintain relationships with local store owners and their employees by offering them discounts at our locations. We support local sports teams through sponsorship deals and community groups as they are very important.”
Moving forward, together
Shabar believes strongly in the future of Chaiiwala of London in Canada, despite the pandemic-fuelled struggles during the early days of his Mississauga location. As he strives to help his franchises be the best that they can be, he welcomes the gaps in his knowledge and looks forward to growing as a franchisee. Both master franchisers Kothiwala and Gundhra have encouraged Shabar’s growth mindset throughout his franchisee journey.
“One thing that they’ve always done is that they’ve always been there and supported me throughout this process,” says Shabar. “They’ve been like, ‘Just reach out to us, we’ll help you.’ They give you, as a franchisee, confidence.’”
With two successful stores under his belt, Shabar is excited for the future of Chaiiwala, and proud of all they’ve accomplished so far.
Learn more about franchising with Chaiiwala of London
