Aly and Shehzad Janmohamed are guiding their family-run franchising business across borders and to new heights
By Alya Somar
The father-son story of Aly and Shehzad Janmohamed’s international franchising success starts with Aly’s story of migration and franchise ownership. Aly moved from Tanzania to the U.K. in the 1980s and decided to open his first KFC location in 1985, when his son Shehzad was just three months old. With that first franchise, Soul Foods Group was born. Over the years, Aly acquired many diverse franchises in the U.K. and built Soul Foods Group with the goal of satisfying customers while growing and giving back to the community.
In his early days as a franchisee, Aly spent countless hours in his restaurants working hands-on with staff and customers. His son Shehzad was by his side, witnessing Aly’s hard work and dedication in taking Soul Foods Group to new heights.
Growing up surrounded by his father’s business prowess drove Shehzad to excel in his own education and professional life. He studied at the London School of Economics and launched a successful career in the field of international banking. After establishing himself in that realm, he and his father decided it was best for him to jump into the family business.
Expanding to Canada
In 2011, after decades of first-hand experience operating franchises in the U.K. market, the father and son duo took the family business international. Shehzad immigrated to Canada to expand Soul Foods Group into the new territory. Now, Aly and Shehzad co-own more than 400 KFC, Taco Bell, Starbucks, and Burger King franchises across both Canada and the U.K. with a team of over 7,000. Neither father nor son have any plans of slowing down soon.
“A lot of the growth was from really hard work, determination, and out of no choice but to be successful,” says Shehzad. “I obviously saw that my entire life, and I think that the struggle he went through, I saw every single day. From the time we had our first restaurant, all the way until I graduated, I saw that it was blood, sweat, and tears. The restaurant business is a tough business, and it was all hours of the day, every single day, seven days a week. It’s a 24/7 business.”
Shehzad has learned that flexibility is crucial in the restaurant industry. When he first began learning the ropes of Canadian franchising, he understood that even though he may have experience in the U.K. market, he needed to reframe his thinking for the Canadian landscape.
Shehzad noticed a cycle: some franchise locations lacked investment, performed poorly, and were then denied the further investment they needed to recover and perform well again. In spite of this vicious cycle—one that was ultimately hurting brands—Soul Foods Group doubled down and dedicated themselves to acquiring these franchises and reviving them. This meant that Shehzad had to adapt to the Canadian palette, understand different labour laws, and build his Soul Foods Canada team from scratch.
“Canada will always be different on its own, but I think two things stay the same: investments in best-in-class operations will always drive results. So, if you’re giving the customer what they want in the right way, you get rewarded for it,” Shehzad explains.
Over time, Shehzad adapted and acquired multiple locations of the same franchises he worked with back in the U.K., developing a notable interest in Taco Bell when he saw that Canada was an underpenetrated market for the brand. It seemed like a natural fit, as he noticed that Canadian customers in particular were open to trying unfamiliar cuisines, focused on value, and excited by innovation. Taco Bell continues to emphasize economic value for its customers and consistent product innovation, and he was confident they would exceed the expectations of local consumers. This prediction proved accurate, and Soul Foods Group would continue to open Taco Bell franchises across Canada for at least the next decade.
A true duo
Aly and Shehzad’s decision to stick with the same franchises that they worked with in the U.K. was intentional. By partnering with bigger brands, they knew that they would have substantial support from upper management while working with each individual location they owned. They felt that internationally recognized brands would have established frameworks in place to support their franchisees, so sticking with KFC, Taco Bell, Starbucks, and Burger King was a natural choice.
“We still won’t make any big decisions without each other,” Shehzad notes. “As you would expect, both as father-son and business partners, we are on the phone multiple times a day, all hours of the night.”
In the last fifteen years since moving to Canada, Shehzad and Aly have learned how to maintain their work relationship and personal relationship in a way that benefits everyone. Shehzad’s first call in the morning and last call at night is to his father. Sometimes, the calls are about business matters, and other times they’re personal. Both of them are determined to be mindful about not mixing the two.
These boundaries are essential to the duo’s continued prosperity with Soul Foods Group. Shehzad spends his days in Toronto—both in his office and visiting his locations. He’s learned to balance working with the franchisors and checking in on his managers and teams. Being in the restaurants brings joy and connection for both him and his employees, elements that are crucial to their joint efforts in keeping things running well. At Soul Foods Group, all several thousand of their employees are viewed as family, just like their founder and his son.
Continuous involvement
Shehzad is also on several board committees with different franchisors, keeping him up to date on the latest new offerings for each restaurant, and contributing to the continued large-scale efforts of each brand. Aly’s longtime business prowess and Shehzad’s adaptability have proven to be a recipe for success in the rapidly evolving restaurant landscape. According the Shehzad, it’s important to have partners that you’re aligned with strategically as well as on a day-to-day basis: “That’s a big part of the philosophies of the brands that we work with.”
“A LOT OF THE GROWTH WAS FROM REALLY HARD WORK,
Shehzad Janmohamed
DETERMINATION, AND OUT OF NO CHOICE BUT TO BE SUCCESSFUL.”
Legacy means something different to everyone, and the Janmohameds are dedicated to cultivating a legacy of giving back. Both father and son hold strong value systems and continue to work with brands that reflect them. Soul Foods Group takes part in the initiatives that come from their franchisors and have their own in-house ways of giving back as a company too. KFC has corporate outlines for donating unused food, Burger King has scholarship programs, and over the years Soul Foods Group has partnered with a Toronto-based mental health charity, just to name a few charitable initiatives. Choosing brands that align with their long-term goals of community impact have been a major factor in their success, and it’s something they plan to keep doing.
Aly and Shehzad believe in sharing what they’ve built together, and they also personally give back through the Aga Khan Foundation as well as other individual projects in the developing world. Whether through their business or personal decisions, Aly and Shehzad Janmohamed have grown their family business into something they are proud to call their own, and they’re looking forward to a prosperous future.
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