The quick-service restaurant network, which founder Stefan Mandachi sold to its two largest franchisees last year, reached 75 locations and sold Greek-inspired products to over 7 million customers in 2023.
The two new partners, Remus Cosovanu and Razvan Nanus, who took over the Spartan business in 2023, together with CEO Gabriel Melniciuc, aim to expand the franchise model to Spain, where there are already two Spartan locations.
They also set out to conduct a series of strategic transformations, which include launching new products, opening new street locations near residential and office areas, as well as starting a management school. The company’s plans also include implementing concrete sustainability processes aimed at reducing energy consumption at operated locations, along with selective waste collection, plastic elimination, and the introduction of sustainable cutlery.
“We aim to consolidate Spartan’s position in the top three restaurants of its kind in Romania, and furthermore, we aim to advance to second place this year. We are considering opening up to 50 new restaurants in the near future, while at the same time continuing the process of streamlining and developing our franchising concept in Spain, where we are already present in two locations,” says Gabriel Melniciuc, CEO of Spartan.
Despite a slight decline of entire fast-food restaurant market in the first quarter of 2024, the industry expects consumer spending to rebound in the second half.
Spartan is an international business with 100% Romanian origins, founded in 2012. In 2023, Strong MND Corporation, which operates in the HoReCa business, as well as the Spartan brand, were taken over by Remus Cosovanu, the brand’s first franchised investor, who already had a 30% share of the number of restaurants – and Razvan Nanus, general director of the franchised company Rerum Food, which has been operating seven restaurants since 2016 in the Bucharest and Constanta regions.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)