Chef Philippe

The Cafe-Restaurant bringing French cuisine to Suva

By Jernese Macanawai

Several months after opening, owner Noellie Garand reflects on what it took to build CHEF PHILIPPE and her long-term plans for the business.

Noellie and her husband Philippe dreamt of opening an eatery that combines their French roots with Pacific flavours and cultures.

After seeing a Facebook post last year calling for interest in taking over the Mana Coffee café at Selbourne Street in Suva, the couple decided to take a chance on the turnkey business opportunity.

A turnkey business is one that is ready to open and operate.

The Garands expected to open CHEF PHILIPPE Café-Restaurant within a few weeks of buying the establishment. What they didn’t anticipate was the overhaul that was needed to get there.

“The business opportunity was advertised as a ‘turnkey opportunity’. The key did not turn well at the beginning … most equipment was very tired or even broken. We also had pest control and cleanliness challenges,” Noellie said.

Equipment had to be replaced, and the space needed to be brought up to standard.

The couple also engaged a negotiator to finalise the business arrangement with the previous owners, which allowed them to inherit some of the venue’s assets.

“It took time to negotiate the business opportunity as we also struggled to quickly get the financials our valuator needed to make a fair valuation of the business. We made it work thanks to some legal help,” she explained.

“We just needed time to make sure the business agreement was written as per the commercial laws of Fiji.”

They finally signed the deal in August.

“In the end, we did not really buy a turnkey business opportunity. We had to start from scratch.”

Had the Garands not signed the deal, they would have had to close for months to “rebuild”. For a project of this scale, the Garands opted not to take out a bank loan. Instead, Noellie, who runs a social enterprise consultancy, invested $120,000 of her own money towards the business opportunity. 

“What we did was very conventional whenever you buy a business that has been in operation for a few years,” Noellie said.

“We just didn’t want to buy the Mana Coffee brand because, you know, my husband Philippe is a brand in his own right.

“We also didn’t want to use their social media.”

CHEF PHILIPPE has been in business since April 10, 2025. Noellie described running the café-restaurant as “very demanding”, even though her husband, Philippe, has over 40 years of experience in hospitality.

Despite earning a decent monthly income, the business is only breaking even, as any “gross profit is reinvested to continue replacing old equipment”. However, there are plans to do large-scale catering to turn a profit.

“We’re hoping to raise our sales from $4,000 to $6,000 before we can pay ourselves and start making a profit,” she said back in August.

The café-restaurant is only the beginning for the couple. Noellie said they hoped to establish a CHEF PHILIPPE cooking academy within the next five years.

“Giving back to Fiji is important to us. Philippe wants to keep sharing his food and service knowledge with young Fijian chefs so they lift their skills to international standards,” she explained.

“We also want to encourage small food businesses in rural areas. The opportunities are endless.”

Tips from Noellie, owner of CHEF PHILIPPE café-restaurant:  

• Aspiring café-restaurant owners need to start with a solid business plan and be most organised with the related accounting, banking, compliance, HR and marketing.
• A good cash flow is needed to anticipate unexpected expenses.
• Managing a café-restaurant is a skill. You cannot improvise and become a successful business owner overnight.
• Think big but start small and stay true to yourself at all times.
• Be authentic. Respect both your customers and your staff.
• No business is perfect. Be humble and always look for ways of improvement.