Kolkata, Nov 23 (PTI) Garden Cafe, among India’s earliest homegrown restaurant chains to adopt the franchise model, is gearing up for expansion with plans to set up a snack manufacturing facility in Bulgaria, a company official said on Sunday.

The proposed expansion for a probiotic potato chips and makhana unit in a European country comes with the brand reflecting on its 56-year legacy.

Garden Cafe Founder Sandip Nowlakha said the proposed Bulgaria unit will anchor the company’s export strategy across Europe.

The products will be marketed under the Jiggies brand, which is also available in India through premium retail channels and clubs, he said.

Nowlakha, who already exports probiotic potato chips from its boutique Jiggies label to the Balkan nation of Bulgaria, said the move is driven by the need to reduce shipping delays that eat into the product’s shelf life and affect the position of Jiggies as an international premium brand.

“Probiotic chips have a six-month shelf life, but almost three months are lost in shipping and distribution. No one wants to buy a product close to expiry. Producing in Europe is the only viable solution,” he told PTI.

The proposed plant will exclusively handle probiotic products and roasted makhana, both positioned as niche, high-value snacks, he said.

“This will never be a mass-market potato chip. Jiggies is a boutique brand, and Europe has international visibility,” said Nowlakha.

The company is currently conducting test-marketing for makhana in Bulgaria with small consignments shipped as the product remains unfamiliar to European consumers, he said.

Probiotic chips, however, already have a steady demand among premium restaurants there. “Without testing and understanding the market, you can’t set up a factory. Sampling is crucial,” he said.

Nowlakha estimates that setting up a food-grade plant in Bulgaria would "cost about three times as much as a similar unit in India, but the economics remain favourable".

“Food production costs and selling prices in Europe are roughly three times higher, so margins stay the same at about 25 per cent,” he added.

Garden Cafe - founded in 1968 and credited with introducing a franchise model in 1992 - has since built multiple F&B and snack brands.

As it charts its international manufacturing plans, Nowlakha said the company’s long legacy offers the confidence to scale selectively in premium global markets.

Recalling the brand’s early challenges, he referred to a major staffing crisis when 14 trained managers were poached by a star hotel just as Garden Cafe was preparing to open four outlets simultaneously. “It was an emotional and financial shock, but it made us more resilient,” he said.

The group today operates Garden Cafe, Salted, Fillers, Corner Cafe, Starlit Cafe and the Jiggies snack label.

The overseas push, he said, marks the next phase of the company’s evolution.

“Europe may be a smaller market, but it gives us global recognition and opens doors for the future,” Nowlakha added. PTI BSM BDC

Garden Cafe plans a Bulgaria probiotic snack plant to reduce shipping delays and boost European exports. Garden Cafe plans a food-grade manufacturing unit in Bulgaria to anchor its export strategy for Jiggies probiotic chips and roasted makhana, addressing shelf-life loss during shipping by producing locally. The unit will be dedicated to niche, premium probiotic products; test-marketing through small consignments informs market entry. European production costs are estimated at roughly three times Indian costs, with expected gross margins near 25% due to higher selling prices.