What Chaiiwala does

Chaiiwala is a UK-based Indian street food café franchise founded in 2015 and headquartered in Leicester under Rowda Group Ltd. The company operates 115+ stores across 54 UK cities, with international franchise expansion into Canada and the UAE. Its core offering centers on a proprietary, slow-brewed Karak Chaii (over 100 million cups sold since founding) alongside a broad menu of Indian street food: Wala Wraps served in stone-baked naan, Bombay rice bowls, all-day breakfast, Bombay toasties, street food snacks (Samosa Chaat, Vada Pav, Pani Puri Poppers), signature desserts, and a children's range. The product portfolio is supported by a transactional mobile app (iOS/Android) offering points, skip-the-queue pre-ordering, and app-exclusive deals, with online ordering also delivered through Just Eat, Uber Eats, Deliveroo, and a proprietary food2go platform.

The business model is primarily franchise-led, with a stated typical investment of £180,000-£300,000 per store and a five-step onboarding process (apply, interview, site selection, fit-out, open). The franchisor captures upfront franchise fees plus ongoing royalties, while retail revenue is generated at the store level across dine-in, takeaway, and delivery channels. Secondary revenue streams include catering and events (weddings, corporate, festivals), branded merchandise through a Shopify storefront ('Chaiiwala Originals'), and licensing of delivery aggregator presence. Pricing is fully transactional with no subscription, ranging from £1.00 for entry items to £29.95 for a family platter, and value meals cluster around £4.45-£8.00.

Chaiiwala positions itself as the UK's defining Indian street food café brand, leaning on cultural authenticity, franchise scalability, and community engagement through the Chaiiwala Foundation (Ramadan iftar meals, youth mentoring, homelessness outreach). Strategic trajectory points to 500 global stores by 2035, with 2026 milestones including a loyalty app launch, full menu refresh, airport (Birmingham BHX) and motorway service station (Watford Gap) openings, and a new COO appointment signaling organizational scaling. Membership in the British Franchise Association provides credibility for the franchise model.

Name

Chaiiwala

Legal name

Rowda Group Ltd

Website

https://chaiiwala.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Chaiiwala is a UK-based Indian street food café franchise founded in 2015, operating 115+ stores across 54 cities. It serves signature slow-brewed Karak Chaii, wraps, rice bowls, and street food, with international expansion into Canada and UAE targeting 500 global stores by 2035.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Quick-Service Restaurant (Indian Street Food Café)

NAICS

Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Dessert Cafes (Coffee + Desserts) (THAFADAH)

Keywords

• Indian street food
• Quick service restaurant
• Chai and snacks
• Café franchise
• Food and beverage

Headquarters

HQ city

Leicester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Retail Food & Beverage Sales: In-store purchases across 115+ UK locations. Transaction-based model where customers pay at point of sale. Includes dine-in and takeaway orders placed directly at stores. Menu categories span hot drinks, cold drinks, all-day breakfast, wraps, rice bowls, toasties, street food, desserts, and kids meals.
2. Third-Party Delivery Orders: Online orders processed through Just Eat, Uber Eats, Deliveroo, and proprietary ordering platform (food2go). Stores appear on delivery platforms under individual subdomains. Platform commissions and delivery fees apply.
3. Franchise Fees & Royalties: Franchise investment range of £180k-£300k depending on site, fit-out, and location. Franchisees pay ongoing royalties. The company provides site selection, fit-out, training, supply chain, and marketing support.
4. Catering & Events: Per-booking catering service for weddings, corporate events, festivals, and private parties. Non-refundable 25% deposit required to confirm bookings. Balance due ahead of service. Partnership opportunities for charities and community organisations.
5. Merchandise (The Originals): Branded merchandise sold through Shopify store under 'Chaiiwala Originals' line. Includes seasonal drops and core collections. Governed by separate Shopify terms including 14-day cancellation rights.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Chaiiwala operates a network of Indian street food cafés serving slow-brewed Karak Chaii, Wala Wraps, Bombay Bowls, street food snacks, all-day breakfast, and signature desserts. The business operates through franchise and company-owned stores across 115+ UK locations, with online ordering via delivery aggregators and a proprietary loyalty app.

Product overview

Chaiiwala is a UK-based Indian street food café franchise operating on a hub-and-spoke model. The core offering centers on Karak Chaii (their signature slow-brewed spiced tea) and Wala Wraps (naan bread wraps with various fillings), supported by an all-day breakfast menu, hot/cold drinks, rice bowls, Bombay toasties, street food snacks, and signature desserts. The product portfolio includes multiple Karak Chaii variants (No Added Sugar, Zafrani with saffron, Vegan), the Wala Bundles combo meals, and a Wala Kids range for children. Digital products include a loyalty app with points and skip-the-queue functionality, and online ordering via delivery platforms (Just-Eat, Uber Eats, Deliveroo) and the food2go ordering system. The business model includes catering services for events and a franchise program targeting 500 global stores by 2035. Merchandise (The Originals) extends the brand through apparel and lifestyle products sold via Shopify.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Karak Chaii
• Wala Wraps
• All Day Breakfast
• Hot Drinks
• Cold Drinks
• Rice Bowls (Bombay Bowls)
• Bombay Toasties
• Street Food
• Signature Desserts
• Wala Kids
• Chaiiwala Rewards App
• Franchise Program
• Catering & Events
• The Originals Merchandise

Quantifiable outcome

• 100+ million cups of Karak Chaii poured
• +4 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Just EatcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery platform partnership for online ordering and delivery. Chaiiwala stores listed on Just Eat marketplace for customer ordering.
• Uber EatscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery platform partnership for online ordering and delivery. Chaiiwala stores listed on Uber Eats for customer ordering.
• DeliveroocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery platform partnership for online ordering and delivery. Chaiiwala stores listed on Deliveroo for customer ordering.
• Local Mosques (Ramadan Iftar Partnership)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChaiiwala Foundation partners with local mosques in Birmingham, London, and Manchester to serve 2,000+ iftar meals every weekend during Ramadan. Community outreach initiative.
• Local Homelessness CharitiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMonthly hot-meal drops in partnership with local homelessness charities. Community outreach initiative serving 180,000+ hot meals through foundation programs.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Chaayos: India-based chai and snack café chain operating in a similar desi street-food + chai category with comparable signature hot-beverage concept and fast-casual service model. Direct analogue for Chaiiwala's core offering and a benchmark for unit economics in the karak/chai category.
• Dishoom: UK-based, multi-site Indian restaurant brand with a strong cult following and 75,000+ review-style brand affinity. Comparable to Chaiiwala on Indian cuisine focus, UK high-street density, and brand-led community positioning, though higher price-point and full-service.
• Chai Point: India's largest organised chai retail chain with tea cafés and a B2B chai delivery subscription model. Closest functional peer to Chaiiwala on product (chai-led), customer occasion, and franchise/retail hybrid business model.

Emerging players

• Chatime: Global bubble tea and tea-based beverage chain with comparable tea-led beverage category, counter-service format, and franchised global expansion. Comparable on beverage category and franchise system design rather than food offering.

Broad incumbents

• Wagamama: UK pan-Asian restaurant chain with comparable Asian food positioning, large-format UK store base, and brand-led loyalty. Comparable on food category adjacency (Asian cuisine) and UK multi-unit operating model rather than direct menu overlap.
• Caffè Nero: Established UK coffee chain with a similar café format, high-street real estate footprint, and loyalty programme. Comparable on location strategy and counter-service café economics, though positioned as a broad coffee incumbent rather than a desi street-food specialist.
• Costa Coffee: UK's largest coffee chain (now owned by Coca-Cola) with extensive high-street, retail park, airport, and motorway service station presence. Closest direct comparison for Chaiiwala's transit-and-retail footprint strategy including the new Birmingham Airport and Watford Gap stores.
• Greggs: UK's largest bakery/food-on-the-go chain with comparable value-deal pricing (£1-£6 range), UK-wide footprint, and delivery aggregator presence. Useful benchmark for food-to-go unit economics and value-tier pricing strategy in the UK.
• Pret a Manger: UK fast-casual food-to-go chain with comparable all-day breakfast, wraps, and hot drinks menu categories, plus heavy commuter and airport presence. Comparable on transaction-based pricing, value-deal bundles, and urban high-street unit economics.

Regional players

• Chaiiwala Canada (subsidiary/international franchise): Canadian arm of Chaiiwala's international franchise expansion, serving the South Asian diaspora in Canadian cities. Most comparable entity for assessing Chaiiwala's North American playbook, store economics, and diaspora-focused cultural positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/chaiiwala

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chaiiwala