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FRANCHISED café chain Shingle Inn has opened its 50th store in Perth ahead of an important family milestone.
The opening of the new CBD location coincides with the 40th anniversary since the Bellchambers family purchased the original Shingle Inn café in Brisbane.
The first café was opened in 1936 on Edward Street by the Webster family.
Directors Andrew and Peter Bellchambers converted the business into a franchise model in 2009, when it consisted of eight company-owned stores in south-east Queensland.
The brand has since expanded to 29 locations across the state, as well as stores in NSW, ACT, Victoria and Western Australia.
Andrew Bellchambers says both he and his brother, Peter, always had the goal of reaching 50 stores in the network.
"It will be the 40th anniversary of our parents purchasing the original Shingle Inn café from the Webster family," Bellchambers says.
"This will also mark our stewardship surpassing that of the Webster's who owned the café for 39 years.
"Despite a quite methodical approach towards the milestone, it has arrived remarkably quickly thanks to our very dedicated team, all of which should be proud of their individual efforts toward this collective achievement."
Bellchambers says the secret to Shingle Inn's longevity in the market has been combining innovation with the family heritage.
"The family component is inherent in franchisees operating their Shingle Inn store," he says.
"They manage it as an individual family unit, but at the same time they are a part of the broader Shingle Inn family.
"On the other hand, innovation is as equally important as tradition, and I suppose these may seem at odds with one another.
"It is definitely an interesting balance for us not to lose Shingle Inn's heritage for the generations of customers who love to visit our stores, while at the same time challenging ourselves to be innovative and stay at the forefront of a fast-moving industry."
The company plans to introduce the brand to other cities across the country. The new Perth store is the sixth in Western Australia.
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