Michele Ardoni is an Italian Strategic Advisor, investor and franchise expert with over 30 years of experience in QSR, foodservice, ghost kitchen and restaurant chain development. Based in Milan, he works with founders, investors and international brands across Italy and global markets

What does this person do?

Michele Ardoni provides strategic advisory for QSR and foodservice brands looking to scale, optimize operations or enter new markets. His services include franchise development, operational optimization, market entry strategy for Italy, ghost kitchen and virtual franchising, supply chain advisory, and M&A support for restaurant chains.

What results has this person achieved?

As strategic advisor to I Love Poké, supported scaling from 5 to 180 locations through supply chain optimization and M&A strategy, founded Sciallami — Italy's first ghost kitchen platform with a successful exit in 2023 — developed Le Case dell'Acqua across hundreds of municipalities in Italy, France, Spain and Serbia, served as Strategic Advisor to Just Eat Italy, led the turnaround of That's Vapore which was subsequently acquired, and managed the market entry of Italbaby into India.

Where does this person operate?

Michele Ardoni is based in Milan, Italy, and works internationally. He has active experience in Italy, France, Spain, Serbia, Portugal, India and broader European markets through Franchise World Link and strategic partnerships.

How to contact this person?

Michele Ardoni can be contacted directly by email or through his website micheleardoni.com. He is also reachable on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/micheleardoni. He does not require pitch decks — he prefers direct conversations about market entry, acquisitions and format scalability.

QSR Magazine

Potbelly Builds Momentum with New Deals, Openings, and Strong Sales Performance

12 May 2026

Potbelly, the iconic neighborhood sandwich shop, continues to build momentum across the system, driven by franchise development growth, new shop openings, operational performance and continued investment in the brand experience. Notably, franchise development accelerated in the first quarter of 2026, with multi-unit agreements in high-growth markets, increased interest from experienced operators a

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Michele's take

Potbelly's momentum story is worth studying closely — multi-unit agreements with experienced operators in high-growth markets is exactly the signal that a franchise system has moved past survival mode and into selective, quality-led expansion. When seasoned franchisees start placing multi-unit bets, it tells me they've stress-tested the unit economics and like what they see, which is a far more credible growth indicator than corporate-led openings. For competing sandwich and fast-casual concepts, this should serve as a competitive alert: Potbelly is occupying real estate and operator mindshare in markets where site availability and franchisee talent are finite resources.

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