Spur expands Doppio with café and grab-and-go formats

Spur Corporation is broadening Doppio’s reach through café, bistro and grab-and-go formats, opening up different trading locations and potential opportunities for existing franchisees. The expansion includes the first Doppio Roam, which opened at Irene Village Mall in Centurion in August, according to The Citizen’s report of 30 September 2026.

A broader role for Doppio

Doppio Zero now forms the bulk of Spur Corporation’s speciality brands unit. Spur chief executive Val Nichas described Doppio as the group’s leading innovator of trading formats, with Doppio Caffè, Doppio Bistrot and Doppio Roam introduced over the past year.

The Citizen reported a total of 38 Doppio stores across the formats. The core Doppio Zero brand accounted for 27, including new restaurants in Irene Village, Hartenbos and East Rand Mall during the preceding 12 months.

Doppio added seven stores in the year to 30 June. That expansion is distinct from the August opening of the first Roam outlet, which fell in the group’s new financial year.

For South Africa’s franchise community, the development is about more than another restaurant opening. Spur is using an established brand to enter trading settings and meal occasions where the group has not previously been able to compete. The different formats show how that approach is being put into practice, rather than simply extending the standard Doppio Zero restaurant model.

Caffè moves into captive-market locations

Doppio Caffè has opened in locations with a captive market, including Sandton Mediclinic, the Ballyoaks office park in Bryanston and Marriott’s Protea Hotel Sea Point.

Those sites give the brand a presence in hospitals, office parks and hotels, alongside its established restaurant locations. They also make the choice of premises a central part of the format’s story: these are openings tied to particular settings, rather than a list of conventional restaurant sites.

The Citizen identified both Caffè and Roam as formats that bring Spur into more direct competition with Famous Brands’ Mugg & Bean. The report put Mugg & Bean’s estate at 301 stores at the end of February 2026.

That figure provides context for the size of the established competitor. It does not, however, establish how many additional Doppio locations could be supported, or how quickly Spur intends to expand the newer formats. The reported openings demonstrate the direction of travel, not a published national rollout target.

Roam offers a possible satellite model

The first Doppio Roam opened opposite the new Checkers Hyper at Irene Village Mall. Its offer includes coffee, baked items, healthy meals and retail products, positioning it as a food-on-the-move or grab-and-go concept.

The outlet belongs to an existing Doppio franchisee. Nichas said these stores would probably become satellite outlets for franchisees who already own Doppio Zero restaurants.

That is an important distinction for prospective applicants. The reported opportunity is a possible route for existing operators to add another format, rather than confirmation of a general offer to new franchisees. Nichas’s comments describe a likely ownership model; they do not amount to a commitment that every Doppio Zero franchisee will be offered a Roam outlet.

The report did not disclose Roam’s establishment costs, franchise fees or financial performance. Those details would be necessary before an operator could assess the commercial case for adding a satellite store.

Bistrot puts nearby outlets into the equation

Doppio Bistrot, at the Nine Yards development in Rosebank, takes a different approach and includes a private dining area. Nichas said the outlet had attracted considerable attention.

The Bistrot is company-owned, as are the nearby Doppio restaurants in Greenside and Rosebank. Nichas explained that the group had not wanted to franchise it yet because of the risk of cannibalising existing business, although it could choose to do so later.

That decision adds a useful qualification to the expansion story: a new format does not automatically mean an immediate franchise opportunity. Ownership and the effect on neighbouring restaurants remain part of the decision.

Practical takeaway: Existing and prospective Doppio operators should establish which formats are available to them, request format-specific financial information and clarify how proposed sites would affect nearby outlets before making an investment decision.