Maki & Ramen

Maki & Ramen spent a decade operating restaurants before its first franchise began trading. The UK estate now includes city-centre restaurants, shopping-centre units and an entertainment venue. The Northern Quarter franchise shows the format operating under a second named ownership group, while Byres Road and Braehead show the first partners taking on a second restaurant.

The public sales evidence is stronger than the profit evidence. Trade reporting places the business in The Sunday Times 100 and cites £18.9 million in reported sales for the period used in that ranking. The franchise brochure gives projected gross sales for two formats. Those figures show the scale of the opportunity the brand is presenting, while rent, staffing, food costs and fit-out finance determine what an operator can retain.

• Proven and profitable core model · 2.5/5. Long-running UK trading, reported sales and four franchised outlets establish that the restaurant model operates at scale. The reviewed sources do not establish sustained UK profitability across the franchised estate.
• Ability to operate without daily founder involvement · 5/5. An established COO, UK operating team and independently led franchise restaurants provide credible evidence that Teddy Lee can step away from daily restaurant operations.
• Ideal franchisee profile · 3/3. Maki & Ramen sets expectations around values, operating involvement and capital, and the application asks about assets and location. The named franchise groups show the types of operators the brand has accepted.
• Realistic franchisee earning potential · 2/4. The fit-out models, multiple trading franchise sites and a repeat investment by the first partners support a credible commercial case. Actual operator earnings, margins and payback remain unpublished.
• Market differentiation · 3/3. The combination of handmade ramen, centrally produced broth, sushi and an open-kitchen restaurant format gives the offer a recognisable identity across venues.

The strongest Build evidence is the link between what head office provides and what a local team has to deliver. Maki & Ramen produces signature broth centrally, identifies specialist suppliers and provides operating guides. Its 21-day programme covers the kitchen, front of house, leadership, food safety and financial management. That structure gives franchisees a way to teach the same service to a new restaurant team.

The UK openings show how those systems have travelled across different sites and partners. The first group opened a second restaurant at Braehead with support from the wider team. The second named group opened in Manchester. The full score reflects published training, guides, resources and repeatable opening support. The public evidence does not include the contents of the internal manuals.

• Documented operating playbook · 5/5. The franchise site and BFA profile explicitly describe operating guides and continuing access to documented resources.
• Structured onboarding and training · 4/4. The published 21-day programme includes practical training in an existing restaurant, followed by refresher resources, coaching and site visits.
• Consistent delivery of the brand experience · 4/4. Central broth production, common supplier arrangements, food preparation training and shared service standards help partners deliver the same core experience.
• Central access to operating systems · 3/3. Franchisees receive online resources and operating guides, supported by central supply and inventory processes and recruitment tools.
• Launch without constant founder support · 4/4. Named franchise operators and a separate COO and business development team have delivered openings. Braehead provides evidence of an existing partner opening again with that support structure.

A prospective franchisee can find a dedicated franchise website, download a brochure, compare two fit-out formats and submit an application. The form asks about the proposed location, assets and available investment. That gives the development team a way to establish whether the candidate and the restaurant they are considering fit the opportunity.

Maki & Ramen took the offer to market through trade publicity, its franchise website, the British & International Franchise Exhibition and the opening of its first franchise in Glasgow. The gap sits between enquiry and acceptance. The company describes a rigorous selection process and an initial meeting, while the sequence of interviews, assessment and approval is only partly visible.

• Clear franchise proposition · 5/5. The materials explain the restaurant offer, two fit-out formats, supply chain, training and marketing support.
• Messaging for the right candidates · 4/4. The brand describes the commitment, values and financial capacity it expects. The application asks questions relevant to a prospective restaurant operator.
• Clear enquiry journey · 4/4. The brand links directly to a franchise website, brochure and application form, giving candidates a clear route to start.
• Discovery before acceptance · 2/4. The application and brochure show initial financial screening and a first meeting about requirements. The complete approval and assessment process is unpublished.
• Go-to-market plan · 3/3. Public franchise promotion, exhibition activity and a trading pilot franchise establish that the offer was taken to market through several channels.

Maki & Ramen has expanded in the UK through a combination of company restaurants and franchise openings. The four verified franchise outlets show progress in several markets, and the first partners have taken on a second restaurant. The COO has publicly distinguished the company and franchise pipelines, reporting four company sites and two franchise sites in the 2027 plan. That gives the expansion strategy more substance than a single estate target.

The public record gives less visibility into the recruitment process producing that pipeline. The COO described good interest and leads from people in hospitality and retail. That is useful evidence of candidate demand at a point in time. It does not establish how many qualified UK prospects arrive each month, which channels bring in the best operators or what proportion open a restaurant.

• Consistent monthly franchise enquiries · 0/5. The brand reports interest from prospective franchisees, but monthly enquiry and qualification figures are unpublished.
• Enquiry sources and lead quality tracking · 0/4. The application qualifies financial capacity and location. The sources reviewed do not show tracking of applicant quality or outcomes by acquisition channel.
• Enquiry-to-franchisee conversion tracking · 0/4. Four outlets can be verified. The number of enquiries, applications, approvals and agreements behind them is unpublished.
• Clear plan for expansion locations · 3/3. The company has identified specific markets and sites, delivered franchise openings in several of them, and publicly separated its next franchise and company pipelines.
• Recruitment beyond the founder · 2/4. The COO and business development team handle visible parts of franchise expansion and opening support. The public evidence only partly establishes that the recruitment process runs independently of the founder.

All four verified UK franchise outlets have identifiable local venue pages. Byres Road and Manchester’s Northern Quarter can reach neighbourhood customers directly. Braehead and The O2 can also draw on the shopping and entertainment destinations around them. The brand’s booking, delivery and loyalty routes give customers several ways to make a first visit or order again.

Braehead gives a specific example of local activity. Its launch linked an introductory ramen offer to the brand’s app. The BFA profile also describes collaboration between the central marketing team and franchisees on promotions, seasonal menus and local relationships. The evidence is strongest on the tools and campaigns. Franchise-level reporting on conversion, repeat visits and customer acquisition by channel is less visible.

• Local customer acquisition support · 5/5. The brand provides central marketing and local promotion support. Braehead shows that support being used by a franchise restaurant.
• Local online presence · 4/4. Byres Road, Northern Quarter, The O2 and Braehead all have identifiable venue pages, with additional destination visibility for The O2 and Braehead.
• Local marketing plan after launch · 2/4. Loyalty, seasonal promotions and support for local activity are evidenced. A documented ongoing plan for every franchise restaurant could not be verified.
• Location-level customer and performance tracking · 1.5/3. Site-specific booking routes, the loyalty integration and performance check-ins support partial credit. Franchise-level acquisition and conversion reporting is unpublished.
• Customers beyond personal relationships · 4/4. Local search, online bookings, delivery, shopping-centre and venue listings, and loyalty campaigns give operators multiple ways to reach and retain customers.