Oakberry Turkey's First Year: The Operational Test of Rapid Growth

Offering açaí-based bowls and drinks, Oakberry completed its first year in Turkey with a store network extending from Istanbul to Izmir and Antalya. According to the company's statement, the Turkey operation reached a consumption of 130 tons of açaí before the end of its first year. During the same period, the brand was awarded three prizes in the categories of growth, store openings, and design implementation by its own global organization.

These figures indicate a rapid market entry. However, the numbers need to be interpreted correctly. The announced consumption of 130 tons is a performance figure shared by the company, which has not been independently audited. The awards are also not from an independent gastronomy or retail organization, but belong to Oakberry's own global brand gathering. Therefore, it is more meaningful to evaluate the development not just as a success announcement, but as a business case showing how a new product category is being scaled in Turkey.

Expanded to different location types in one year

On Oakberry's official Turkey website, locations listed include Bebek, Nişantaşı, Suadiye, Moda, Galataport, Akasya, Emaar, İstinyePark, City’s Istanbul, and Tersane Istanbul in Istanbul; Alsancak, İstinyePark Izmir, Alaçatı, and Çeşme in Izmir; and The Land of Legends in Antalya. The brand also states that it offers products in sports clubs, padel courts, and mobile sales points.

This distribution indicates a strategy different from uniform store growth. The portfolio includes street stores, shopping malls, tourist destinations, seasonal beach points, and sports-focused sales areas.

Diversity in locations may allow the brand to reach different customer groups. In return, the traffic structure, seasonal duration, average spending, and working hours of each store vary. The street store in Bebek cannot be managed with the same sales and personnel plan as a tourist facility in Antalya or a seasonal point in Çeşme.

For this reason, the total number of stores alone does not reflect the quality of growth. Sales per store, rental expenses, product waste rate, personnel costs, repeat visits, and the share of delivery sales should be monitored together.

The infrastructure for growth was established before the store

Mustafa Mert Işık, Managing Partner of Oak Food, stated in an interview published in December 2025 that the investment made for the Turkey operation reached approximately 3 million dollars. According to Işık, the investment covered dry and cold storage, import processes, store rentals, marketing efforts, training, and travel. In the same interview, it was noted that an average store requires an investment of approximately 150 thousand dollars.

This picture shows that chains relying on an imported main product must invest in supply infrastructure before opening stores. The continuity of the açaí base depends on import planning, customs processes, storage temperature, and uninterrupted distribution to stores.

The unavailability, delay, or unpredictable increase in the cost of the product directly affects the sales of the product at the center of the menu. Unlike coffee, baked goods, or sandwich concepts, where alternatives can be quickly found from local suppliers, changing the main product in an açaí-focused model can weaken the brand promise.

Therefore, the decision for growth should be made not only based on new store demand but also according to stock security and cold chain capacity.

Narrow product core facilitates scaling

Oakberry's business model is based on personalizing a limited number of main products with different sizes and additional ingredients. It is stated on the official product page that bowls are offered in three sizes of 270, 350, and 500 milliliters and can be customized with fruits, granola, and various additions. The menu also includes smoothies, matcha, coffee, and protein drinks.

A narrow main product structure can provide advantages in terms of purchasing, recipe standardization, and employee training. An operation that does not require very extensive kitchen equipment can also allow working with smaller square meters in suitable locations.

Personalization has two-way results. Allowing customers to create their own products can increase perceived value and additional product sales. However, if the number of options is not controlled, service time may extend, portion standards may deteriorate, and cost tracking may become difficult.

In this model, the business needs to track not only how many bowls are sold but also the cost of selected additions, the contribution margin of each size, and the preparation time per order during peak hours.

Fast service system established with over 100 employees

In its corporate announcement dated May 2026, Oakberry Turkey stated that it operated 16 stores in three regions with over 100 employees within nine months. This also shows that growth occurred rapidly not only in terms of location but also in human resources.

One of the biggest risks in rapid store openings is that the speed of training experienced employees and store managers lags behind the pace of openings. Although the product preparation system may seem relatively simple, standard training is required for portioning, hygiene, allergen information, customer guidance, cash register usage, and peak hour management.

The brand's ability to maintain the same product experience in different cities and locations depends on not cramming training into a few days before openings. Constantly sending experienced employees to new stores may weaken the service quality of existing stores.

For this reason, a pool of store managers, shift supervisors, and training employees should be created alongside the store opening plan in chain growth.

Unit economics will be decisive in franchise goals

Oakberry Turkey's goal announced at the end of 2025 was to reach 50 stores within five years and to make Turkey one of the brand's strong markets in Europe. At that time, the company stated that it planned to strengthen its own operational network first and then transition to a franchise model.

When transitioning to franchise growth, the most important indicator for investors will be the return period on a store basis rather than total consumption amount or brand awards. Investment costs, rent, product imports, logistics, royalty payments, number of employees, and seasonal effects should be clearly calculated.

Interest in the initial period may be high, especially in the healthy living and functional nutrition categories. Sustainable business performance will be measured by how often customers repurchase the product. When trial traffic and regular consumption are not separated, store opening decisions may be overly optimistic.

Stafflink's view

According to Stafflink, Oakberry Turkey's first year demonstrates that a new product category can be made visible in a short time with strong marketing and rapid location investment. The main test in the second year will not be to increase the number of stores, but to create a consistent unit economy in different locations.

In a chain dependent on an imported main product, currency, logistics, and cold chain risks directly affect pricing. Passing all cost increases onto customers may reduce visit frequency; covering them from margins may weaken store profitability.

On the employee side, the speed of openings and training capacity should progress at the same pace. While a standard product model simplifies operations, the product knowledge, speed, and portion discipline of the employees who determine the customer experience will be crucial.

The sustainability of Oakberry's Turkey operation should be measured more by profitability per store, repeat visits, employee turnover rate, and supply security than by the total consumption amount announced.