73 A MEAL SO GOOD THEY
BOUGHT THE RESTAURANT

Fernando Duarte was old friends with Robert Brozin, so when one day Fernando suggested that Robert come with him to a restaurant Fernando had recently discovered, Robert was happy to oblige. When Fernando told him it was selling “the best chicken you’ll ever eat”, Robert knew it should be good, but little did he know how good it would be for him and indeed for their future.

The restaurant was in a small unassuming wooden building situated on the corner of the main road in Rosettenville, an old mining suburb in southern Johannesburg. It was called “Chickenland”. Its speciality was piri piri chicken, a recipe that could trace its roots back through Portugal and Mozambique before arriving in South Africa.

History tells of how Portuguese settlers arrived in Mozambique in the 16th Century, where they quickly discovered the “pili pili” chili which was widely being used by the local population. Enjoying the kick it gave their food, the settlers began to use what they now called piri piri in their own daily cooking. They created a barbecue-style marinade sauce, among other recipes, and this became a favourite throughout Mozambique.

When the Witwatersrand gold rush of 1886 began, many Mozambicans of Portuguese origin went off in search of their fortunes, ultimately relocating to the areas around what was to become Johannesburg. Naturally they took their favourite foods, including piri piri chicken, with them.

Soon restaurants sprung up in these mining towns to feed the new and indeed the local population. One such restaurant was Chickenland, which had its own special recipe for piri piri chicken. It was this special recipe that the two friends, Fernando and Robert, enjoyed that evening in 1987. The meal was good; just as good as Fernando had promised it would be. So together the friends hatched a plan.

They decided to buy not just the recipe, but the restaurant too. Once the deal was done, they decided to re-name the restaurant “Fernando’s” in honour of Durante’s discovery, but quickly found out that there was already a restaurant by that name. They had to rename it. They chose “Nando’s”, an affectionate shortened version of Fernando.

For their new restaurant’s look and feel the partners decided to incorporate influences from both Portugal and South Africa. The logo was derived from the Rooster of Barcelos from Portugal and the décor in that first, and all subsequent restaurants, includes original works of art done by South African artists.

Like those original Portuguese settlers, Nando’s has gone travelling and “come home to roost” in more than 20 countries.

And the moral is that good brands often start with good products or services. Just how good are your products/services?