How Tahini’s is Winning the Race for Growth
For growing brands, expansion is the goal. The real question is how you get there.
At a time when restaurant concepts are racing to sign development deals, enter major markets, and announce aggressive expansion plans, Tahini’s is taking a different approach. The Mediterranean fast-casual brand is growing quickly across North America, but the strategy behind that growth is surprisingly disciplined.
Shawn Saraga has spent more than two decades in franchising, helping open over 1,000 locations across multiple brands. That experience has shaped a philosophy that sounds simple but is often ignored: bad growth is more dangerous than no growth at all.
The conversation explores why the company walked away from locations that looked good on paper, why it chose suburban markets before major urban centers, and why franchisees aren’t automatically awarded multi-unit rights just because they have the capital.
There’s also a broader discussion about what separates successful franchise systems from struggling ones. Education, site selection, operational readiness, and decision-making speed all emerge as recurring themes. As lending standards tighten and operators face greater scrutiny, the brands that win may not be the ones growing the fastest. They may be the ones building the strongest foundation.
For retail real estate professionals, investors, franchise operators, and developers, this discussion offers a useful reminder: the best growth stories aren’t built on ambition alone. They’re built on discipline, execution, and knowing when to say no.
Because sometimes the smartest expansion strategy isn’t finding more deals.
It’s passing on the wrong ones.
What You’ll Hear
- Why the fastest-growing brands are often the most disciplined
- How Tahini’s is using social media to fuel real-world expansion
- Why saying “no” to the wrong location can be the best growth strategy
- The challenge of balancing speed, execution, and smart decision-making
- How franchise education creates stronger operators and better outcomes
- What it takes to scale a restaurant brand without losing control