Vish Talreja, now director of property and development at Papa Johns, oversees a network of more than 450 restaurants with a strategy centered on pre-opening decisions. His background spans a decade in quick-service operations and pandemic-driven shifts toward collaborative property deals. The transition from QSR roles to property leadership revealed a critical insight: a store’s success is largely set before it opens. “Stores work extremely hard to bring customers in, but if you plan a store properly from the start, with the right location, the right customer in mind, the right operational vision, a sensible rent bill and a strong design, then everything that follows is set up for success,” he states.
His early work focused on eliminating silos between property and operations teams. Decisions about rent, site selection, or design frequently occurred in isolation, often prioritizing short-term savings over long-term performance.
The pandemic accelerated a shift from transactional to relational property strategies. Landlords and agents became essential partners rather than vendors. When negotiations stalled during lockdowns, those relationships sustained operations. Flexibility and trust proved more valuable than leverage in tight markets.
At Itsu, Talreja expanded the brand beyond London’s shopping centres into secondary towns and university hubs. Prime locations were oversaturated, with soaring rents forcing brands to compete for the same space. The solution required rethinking customer needs—adjusting lighting, design, and even store mood to match regional demand. A lunchtime London model could become an evening business in smaller markets.
Papa Johns now faces a parallel challenge: protecting its core delivery and collection model while identifying untapped market opportunities. Secondary towns, where demand and loyalty are high, present potential, as do partnerships with franchisees and landlords open to innovative property models.
Convenience remains a key focus, but Talreja warns against blindly chasing trends. Brands must evolve with customers across apps, property design, and signage while maintaining a loyal base.
His first six months at Papa Johns will concentrate on three areas: understanding the business, strengthening franchise relationships, and integrating property and operations teams.
The pandemic reshaped Talreja’s approach to property negotiations. But when lockdowns disrupted foot traffic, those strategies failed. Landlords faced financial strain, and agents became gatekeepers.
