Pinnacle Awards - Dec 2021

opened my second store, Uber didn’t have enough drivers to service the
area, and that was in North York. Now, everyone thinks I’m a genius, but
convincing them that I was on the right track was challenging.”
The development also required a significant investment of Kottas’
time. “It’s been fun, but like any business, we’ve had our ups and
downs,” says Kottas. “The amount of work in getting this off the
ground was significant – seven days a week, 16 hours a day.”
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, consumer demand for
contactless food delivery has soared. Ghost Kitchen Brands offers a
scalable business model, allowing the company to expand its footprint
in North America at a rapid pace. In March 2021, it announced partnerships
with Walmart Canada and Saladworks. The first Walmart
location was in St. Catharines, Ont., followed by Woodstock, Ont., and
Toronto, with two more locations set to open in Quebec. Ghost Kitchen
Brands’ agreement with Saladworks will bring 60 new locations to the
U.S. and 30 to Canada by the end of this year. Since then, the dynamic
company has also partnered with Wow Bao, Lola’s Food Inc., Yogen
Fruz and Shaquille O’Neal’s Big Chicken brand.
When it comes to selecting brands to partner with, Kottas only looks
for a few factors. “Regions are the main thing and we’re only taking
on national brands right now,” says Kottas. “If there’s heavy cooking
involved, heavy preparation times or complications that don’t fit
within our system, then we won’t take it on.”
Kottas has set the stage for innovative disruption, unlocking limitless
possibilities for businesses and consumers alike. Currently, Ghost
Kitchen Brands operates in three formats: standalone, mall food court
and big-box store. “We’re a disruptor to the foodservice and hospitality
industry,” says Kottas. “Essentially, we’ve created a national, online food
court. Our model works anywhere, whether it’s an office building, apartment
building, university, airport or Walmart. It’s been fairly easy to hire
brands. It was initially one of the hardest things because no one understood
where this was heading. Now, we’re the leaders in the industry.”
Because ghost kitchens don’t require traditional customer service,
the team can use its time more effectively in the kitchen. As the
company’s brand portfolio continues to grow, its small kitchen teams
still perform impressively.
“Each brand has its own little section in the kitchen, and all the staff are
cross-trained,” says Kottas. “Most importantly, we don’t have a front-ofhouse.
Everything is ordered on kiosks or through third-party platforms,
so our staff is 100-per-cent focused on the execution of the products.”
Furthermore, Ghost Kitchen Brands encourages its teams in each
location to tap into local community-outreach programs. For example,
staff at its Liberty-Village location in Toronto sent hundreds of care
packages, in partnership with Cinnabon and Daydream, to emergencyroom
workers at Sunnybrook Hospital and intensive care unit (ICU)
workers at St. Michael’s Hospital in recognition of their contributions
over the course of the pandemic. Teams at other locations sent care
packages to local senior-living facilities.
Ghost Kitchen Brands has gained traction and will continue to expand its
offerings for years to come. In November, Ghost Kitchen Brands launched its
newest partnership with the much-loved Smoke’s Poutinerie brand.
“I’m excited to get things fired up with an amazing group like Ghost
Kitchen Brands,” says Ryan Smolkin, Chief Entertainment Officer at
Smoke’s. “[They’re] a leader in an explosive new segment of our competitive
industry, and we’re pumped to be on the rock n’ roll gravy
train with them.”
Certainly, more restaurants are turning to this concept to introduce
new menus and expand their reach without having to hire additional
We’re a disruptor
to the foodservice
and hospitality
industry Essentially,
we’ve created a
national, online food
court. Our model
works anywhere —
whether it’s an office
building, apartment
building, university,
airport or Walmart.
It’s been fairly easy
to hire brands. It was
initially one of
the hardest things
because no one
understood where
this was heading.
Now, we’re the
leaders in the
industry
staff or open a new location amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
In turn, the convenience of bundling menus encourages customers to
order more and ultimately boosts profits.
“We’ve committed to open [more locations] next year in Canada and
U.S. We’ve already acquired the real estate and put an area developer
program in place,” says Kottas. “We stopped development for about six
months to solidify the company’s infrastructure and ensure we had the
right people in place, but come January, we’re going to be opening 60
to 70 stores a month.”
Kottas says he’s often referred to as the pioneer of the ghost-kitchen
industry. He’s been involved in franchise business and corporate roles,
but his passion and dedication for entrepreneurship has allowed him to
diversify and take advantage of changing cultural, social and operational
demands. Ultimately, the company’s goal is to have a Ghost Kitchen
open every 12km. If Ghost Kitchen Brands continues on its current
trajectory, it won’t take long to reach that goal. FH
30 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM