Inside Pepper Lunch, Halal Guys, and the Business of Franchising | The Scaling Podcast

Paul Tran has built restaurants from scratch, scaled multi-unit franchises, and helped national brands go global. In this episode, he joins Aaron Harper to talk about what it really takes to grow a franchise system responsibly—without losing your soul. From launching The Halal Guys in Southern California to his newest venture with Pepper Lunch, Paul unpacks the wins, the losses, and the frameworks behind smart, sustainable growth.

00:00 – Intro Paul joins the show after some behind-the-scenes issues (and laughs it off like a pro).

00:51 – How Paul and Aaron Met Online Their "Twitter friendship" and mutual journey in franchising.

03:00 – Crawfish, College, and First-Time Founder Moves Paul's first restaurant—and the ignorance that helped him win.

05:00 – Entering Franchising at France Mart Working under Dan Rowe, early franchise deals, and learning the ropes.

08:30 – Discovering Pepper Lunch Why the concept blew Paul away—and how he became a franchisee and consultant.

10:00 – Unit Economics Breakdown Labor-light operations, higher build-out costs, and long-term profitability.

15:00 – Franchise Sales is Not Like Other Sales Paul and Aaron reflect on their early struggles closing deals and qualifying candidates.

21:00 – The Private Equity Debate How PE changes incentives—and why responsible growth matters more than ever.

32:00 – Building in Public Aaron and Paul talk about the power of transparency, trust, and organic marketing.

43:00 – Scaling with Strategy How content reduced CAC, funded an executive team, and attracted better franchisees.

47:00 – What's Next for Paul Plans for expanding Pepper Lunch and staying connected to responsible franchising.

50:00 – Real Numbers: Costs & Revenue Paul shares candid details about store costs, staff size, and what makes Pepper Lunch work.

56:00 – Final Thoughts + Where to Find Paul Why good franchising needs better storytelling—and how to connect with Paul online.