Veerji Fish & Grill, which is the first Indian restaurant franchise in Canada, was recently awarded for their success. Sonia Gulati was awarded for her success in the category of Established Business of the Year (1-19 Employees) Award at the 26th Annual Abbotsford Business Excellence Awards held in November at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Centre. The event was presented by The Abbotsford News and the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce. Veerji Fish & Grill, the fastest growing South Asian restaurant franchise with eight locations and more on the way, began in 2018 under the leadership of Sonia Gulati and her well known chef husband Lucky Gulati.

By PD Raj – Senior Writer DESIBUZZCanada

Franchising business can be a great way to expand success built upon the original model that created a loyal customer base and quality product-services that have connected with a consumer base deep enough to take out to a wider geographical area.

When Veerji Fish & Grill, one of the fastest growing Indian-South Asian restaurant franchises in Canada with eight locations and more on the way with expansion to Alberta, began in 2018 under the leadership of Sonia Gulati, who along with her well known chef husband Lucky Gulati opened the first location in Abbotsford, they didn’t know that it would have such early success and expand into a successful franchise so quickly.

Veerji Fish & Grill, which is the first Indian restaurant franchise in Canada, was recently awarded for their success. Sonia Gulati was awarded for her success in the category of Established Business of the Year (1-19 Employees) Award at the 26th Annual Abbotsford Business Excellence Awards held in November at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Centre. The event was presented by The Abbotsford News and the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce.

With locations in Abbotsford, Kelowna, Penticton, Langley and Surrey and more on the way with expansion to Alberta, Sonia and Lucky say they found success by focusing on a protein diet with emphasis on fish and BBQ meats and their menu, designed by Lucky, which also includes salmon pakoras along with grilled meats has found favour with both the South Asian community and the mainstream which have led to the success right from the start and have contributed to the success of their franchise locations.

With more than 50 employees and a hands-on approach by the owner-operators including full quality control by Sonia and Lucky, there has been a huge demand for their franchise business. The typical cost to star Veerji Fish & Grill is between $200,000-250,000 with bank financing accounting up to 60-70 percent, it is very attractive to those looking to start a small business with the advantage of expertise from Sonia and Lucky, who help the new franchisee set up new locations and help them turn it into immediate success with in-house-marketing and support.

“We want our new partners in Veerji Fish to succeed so we assist them with everything including financing as their success is our success,” Sonia Gulati tells DESIBUZZCanada.  “We also offer them all our recipes, masala mixes and we monitor and guide them with all kinds of support including that of our great marketing team.”

The Gulatis are happy with the way their franchise business has grown but they want to make sure that the partners they choose are the ones who are fully committed to running a small business and make it a great success and not those looking to be passive investors as it takes a lot of hard work to make every location a success.

Sonia is the business brains behind Veerji Fish and Grill and takes care of every aspect of their fast expanding franchise business including their home and original location in Abbotsford. Under Sonia’s leadership, Veerji Fish & Grill has won numerous awards including Consumer Choice Award-Business Excellence and Business Accelerator Award for fastest growing restaurant franchise 2023.

For more information, contact Sonia-Lucky at 604-300-3777.