In 2018, Matteo Pichi and Vittoria Zanetti launched the Poke House, a chain that rode the wave of Hawaiian cuisine and landed in our country in November 2020. In a short time, the standard billing is close to 7 million in the Spanish market thanks to the combination of healthy food and a varied atmosphere. Its founder Matthew Pichi;
You have been in the business for five years, how has the brand evolved in this time?
5 years of great experience around the brand. We are delighted with the reception that Poke House has had both in Europe and the rest of the world. We have 160 stores in 9 countries with a raw material of 100 million coins and more than 1000 employees in the group. The reception has been wild and we hope to continue to grow and solidify our philosophy and presence for many years to come.
How will 2022 turn out for your chain in Spain?
We closed 2022 with a turnover of 6.9 million coins in the Spanish market, 115% more than last year, which ended with 3.2 million European coins. We are present in the country, nine in Madrid, three in Barcelona, two in Valencia and another in San Sebastián, in addition to the pop-up we set up last summer in La Santa Market on the Costa Brava.
We set the highest quality with the lowest margins
How has the price sentiment risen in the last year?
In 2022 we experienced high inflation in some of our ingredients and at the same time we saw many new brands focusing on opening speed more than quality. We are determined to achieve the highest quality with the lowest margins. The positive side of all this is that we have made changes to our menu and introduced a new bowl size, small, to give customers more options according to their budget. At the same time, we introduced our global supply and logistics chain, which allowed us to incorporate some of the growth in our supply chain. In general, we are very satisfied that our loyalty indicators have grown dramatically.
What plans do you have for your brand in Spain this year and what are your expectations in the year that is marked by consumption outside the home?
Of course, we want to continue to invest in strengthening our digital revenues from home delivery. At the same time, we believe that it is the experience in the workshops that really makes our brand bearable. Our homes are designed to be places where people can feel at home through a quiet but caring experience. That’s why we’re working on exclusive offers and strategies for members of our community, the Poke House Squad, to make your store experience even better. As part of the expansion, we will open approximately 50 restaurants around the world through a combination of high street and high-end shopping malls. In Spain this expansion looks to the south of the peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
Since its birth in 2018, its market has grown with new operators dedicated exclusively to poking and with others that have been incorporated into its portfolio. What differentiating factors will allow them to grow and remain competitive?
We believe that we have a unique value proposition which is summed up in our tagline “the taste of a healthy life”. Our stores share the same attractive and colorful atmosphere, but with their own unique features. We care a lot about the quality of the products and we carefully select local vegetable supplements so that they are fresh and supplied daily, as well as salmon, which are also fed only at the last minute to preserve their nutritional properties. Toppings are created in secret recipes to add a unique touch to each dish. We value timeliness and innovation, and our R&D team is constantly exploring and experimenting with the latest trends in the kitchen industry. Finally, each month a limited ingredient/product is added to the menu in which we combine our focus on customer preferences, sustainability and a healthy lifestyle.
