Oowee is gravitating towards a “mixed” concept that will blend offers from its Diner and Vegan brands, founders Charlie Watson and Verity Foss tell MCA.

The concept currently comprises an Oowee Diner restaurant and delivery kitchen in Bristol, along with five Oowee Vegan sites across London, Brighton, and Bristol.

As restaurants with a diverse offer become more popular, Oowee will look to grow its diner concept by offering its signature ‘dirty’ burgers while expanding the plant-based range on offer.

“We still want to be leaders in the vegan space and have vegan-only restaurants,” Watson says. “A few years ago, you had to go to a 100% vegan place to get good vegan food. Now people are going to mixed concepts.

“In the next few years, we’ll be expanding the vegan options in the diner and moving towards a mixed concept.”

While Oowee has been traditionally focused on its fast food and ‘dirty’ burger options, it will launch a number of new menu items in the coming months to meet consumer needs across day parts.

“We’ll have lighter lunch options, like wraps,” Watson adds. “We’re also offering bigger and more customisable mac n’ cheese portions; it’s one of our most popular products.”

Customisable options will also be offered across the menu, such as plant-based chicken with the choice of dairy or dairy-free cheese to cater to flexitarians.

Another priority this year will be to cover all of London through delivery, which comprises 60-70% of sales in the capital. The business is identifying key areas in the capital to open four to five delivery kitchens.

December trading was strong and sales have been “a lot stronger than hoped” in 2023 so far. While they have been largely flat at Oowee Vegan, the diner has seen 20-30% sales growth on last year, according to Watson.

While the mid-week has been quieter, weekends are still strong, with “people spending a bit more when they do spend.

“Bristol is our home city and strongest performing. London has been fairly consistent but it’s always been our worst performing area. In Brighton, we have a new site where we’re trying to replicate what we’ve done in Bristol…sales have been steadily growing every week and we’re expecting it to thrive over the summer.”

Oowee is still focused on innovating its vegan offer through partnerships with plant-based brands, as well as creating its own items. Watson emphasises growth in the plant-based market has been flat rather than in decline, with consumers looking for healthier alternatives like veg rather than plant-based meat.

“Six years ago, we were the first to do this in Bristol and make it mainstream. All the meat-serving restaurants are offering more than just token vegan options now, so that’s altered our thinking a bit.

“People always want to try the new thing, but we’re lucky we’ve got a great community that’s grown with us.”

While Oowee has refrained from significant price rises, it sits in the higher end of the QSR price point but lower than most fast casual restaurants.

Its growth is self-funded, meaning this year will be about consolidation.

“The last few years, the narrative was about growing as quickly as possible. This year is about holding onto cash and maximising the potential of the current offering.

“It’s a lesson for us to be disciplined and controlled in our approach. If we can operate like this when people go back to spending more, we’ll be very profitable post-recession.