OOSHMAN eyes Queensland expansion as consumer confidence falls

The goal is to reach 26 restaurants by end-2026 and 50 outlets by 2029.

Lebanese fast-food chain OOSHMAN is pressing ahead with plans to expand into Queensland even as Australian consumer confidence slides to multi-year lows, banking on cost efficiencies and stronger margins to offset weaker household spending.

Founder and director Charlie Hoyek said he views Sydney and New South Wales as the group’s base but is preparing to push north within the next two to three years.

“We have three or four in the pipeline, with some possibly opening early or in 2026,” he told QSR Media. The goal is to reach 26 restaurants by end-2026 and 50 outlets by 2029 from 20 now, he added.

The timing comes against subdued consumer sentiment. Australian market research firm Roy Morgan on 23 September reported that consumer confidence fell 1.3 percentage points to 84.6 in the week, the lowest since May.

Rising rents and labour expenses have left households with less discretionary income, whilst cafés, restaurants, and takeaway outlets have raised prices 2.7% over the past year to manage higher input costs.

Hoyek cited the pressure of rising labour and supply costs but said OOSHMAN’s performance gives him confidence to expand. Since the company rebranded in mid-2024, network sales have grown 11%, whilst gross profit margins rose 2.5% through tight supplier negotiations and streamlined packaging.

Average weekly store sales have increased per location, with several sites hitting record weekly turnovers, he said, adding that digital ordering now accounts for 42% of total sales, up from 26% last year.

To keep costs manageable, the chain reworked its menu in May and June, removing high-priced items and redesigning pizzas and wraps so ingredients could be shared across more dishes. Fresh produce is now sliced in-house instead of sourced from a third party, cutting expenses and waste.

Hoyek said the changes lowered costs whilst protecting customer value. “The main goal this year was to really drive the cost of goods down, but at the same time, you don’t scare customers away.”

The producer price index for final demand rose 0.7% in the June 2025 quarter, following smaller advances in prior periods. Final demand prices increased 3.4% for the 12 months ended in June, the slowest since the September 2021 quarter.

Hoyek said keeping franchisees profitable under such conditions is as important as maintaining customer loyalty.

Alongside geographic expansion, OOSHMAN is scaling its technology. The group wants to boost its digital loyalty program to 200,000 active app users by end-2026 and is exploring artificial intelligence (AI) tools for reporting, automated ordering, upselling, and even self-service kiosks.