It was in Australia, a country where he had gone to work as a cook, that Fran González (Barcelona, 1989) discovered the business potential that could be behind Mexican-style burritos, tacos, and quesadillas. González, who does not come from a family linked to the restaurant sector, had studied cooking at the prestigious Hofmann school and also graduated in Business Administration and Management (ADE) at the UOC. His final degree project was based on the conceptualization of a Tex-Mex and fast-casual style restaurant, a work that ended up crystallizing into the Gonzalez & Co. chain.
The entrepreneur was not sure where or in which country to launch his business idea and, finally, in 2016 he opted for his hometown, Barcelona, with the opening of the first Gonzalez & Co on Córcega street, in the Gràcia neighborhood. "My idea was to set up a chain with an easy-to-sell product, that was standardizable, sustainable over time, and replicable like the burrito, a type of food that had first convinced me as a customer," says González in an interview with The New Barcelona Post. Six years later, and despite the blow that the pandemic has dealt to the restaurant sector, Gonzalez & Co already has a network of seven establishments, invoiced five million euros in 2021, has created 108 jobs, and has expanded to Madrid (2) and Valencia. Its forecast for this year is to earn more than 8 million, 60% more.
From the beginning, González oriented his business towards new market trends, firmly betting on a model based on delivery, but also on being able to eat inside each of the premises, although there is no table service. Thus, 60% of the turnover comes from a single client, Glovo, a platform with which he works exclusively. The remaining 40% are orders that consumers pick up directly or consume in the restaurant. "I strongly believe in this mixed model and in having a great partner like Glovo," says the young entrepreneur, who assures that he is not worried about having this high degree of dependence on the Barcelona delivery application.
Precisely, Gonzalez & Co has just opened this August a fourth location in Barcelona, in the Les Corts neighborhood, which allows it to expand its home delivery radius and now cover 100% of the city. The other Barcelona establishments are located on Còrsega, Consell de Cent (opened in 2017) and Sant Antoni Maria Claret (2021) streets. The new Les Corts restaurant is located on Guitard street, has 150 square meters and fifteen employees, and has involved an investment of 400,000 euros.
Gonzalez & Co operates solely with its own restaurants, meaning it does not work with franchises and finances its growth with its own resources. Thus, compared to other fast-casual restaurant chains, its pace of expansion is slower; González's will is to prioritize the quality of both food and service and avoid uncontrolled growth that could jeopardize customer satisfaction. "80% of our users are recurring; we have a very high degree of loyalty that we want to preserve," highlights the chain's CEO.
In this regard, González assures that the company is not preparing any financing round nor does it plan to allow entry to funds or financial partners. "We are the same partners from the beginning, when in 2016 I raised a family, friends and fools round. Since then, we have grown with our own resources," he assures.
Two years ago, in September 2020, González & Co decided to open a market in Madrid taking advantage of the pull of Glovo and delivery in general during the pandemic. It opted, as a test, to open a kitchen oriented only to home service, but four months ago it inaugurated a conventional format restaurant on Velázquez street, in the heart of the Salamanca neighborhood, which has become its great showcase in Madrid. In October 2021, a third city, Valencia, was opened, with a location on Avenida Aragón.
According to González, a major expansion in the Spanish capital or in Valencia is not currently planned, as the priority is to open new establishments in Barcelona and expand into the metropolitan area, with possible implementations in cities such as Terrassa and Sabadell. "We are living in a moment of great economic uncertainty, a fact that conditions the expansion plan. We are excited to reach new cities, but we are going to prioritize Barcelona and the metropolitan area," says the founder. No new openings are expected this year, and the goal is to be able to inaugurate two more restaurants in 2023. "It will depend a lot on the economic context and on delivery not suffering," he states.
The average ticket at Gonzalez & Co in-store ---where the order is prepared in five minutes and the kitchen is open continuously all day--- is around 16 or 17 euros, and rises to 22 euros with home delivery. The burrito with a thousand and one combinations is the chain's star product, which has adapted typical Mexican gastronomy products to Mediterranean taste and opts for customization, that is, it invites customers to choose their favorite ingredients. "I believe infinitely in this product, there is a lot of potential," highlights González. In addition to burritos, Gonzalez & Co's Tex Mex offer includes tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, fajitas, guacamole and, of course, nachos, another of the star dishes. The chain has also joined the rise of plant-based protein and today 20% of its turnover already comes from dishes made with meat substitutes produced by Heura Foods.
The entrepreneur emphasizes that the chain does not operate with a centralized kitchen model, but rather opts for a more expensive formula that "guarantees higher quality": everything is prepared directly in each of the seven restaurants. "100% of the product is our own, we don't buy sauces or anything frozen, we make everything ourselves with high-quality ingredients," he assures.