Business

The two men behind Doppio Zero

Kirsten Minnaar • 17 March 2025

Paul Christie and Miki Milovanovic founded Doppio Zero as a bakery in 2002 when they couldn’t get proper restaurant zoning. Today, it is a beloved restaurant staple in South Africa with a footprint across the country.

Paul Christie was born into a family of Greek-South African entrepreneurs who always had some store, ranging from coffee shops and convenience stores to takeaway outlets.

“We were brought up in a corner café in Krugers Dorp,” Christie told CNBC Africa. “My grandfather had a bakery, and my other grandfather had a butchery. So we were exposed to self-employed entrepreneurial spirits from day one.”

After studying a BCom in Cape Town, Christie embarked on a working tour of Europe before returning to Johannesburg in 1992.

He spent the next few years opening businesses across the city, including a convenience store and fast-food outlet, a mineral water bottling company, and three coffee shops – one of which he opened with Miki Milovanovic.

His business partner and friend, Milovanovic – a Serbian former policeman, serial entrepreneur and baker – identified a location in the trendy suburb of Greenside where they could open their next venture.

Christie and Milovanovic wanted to open an Italian restaurant together, but they discovered that the space could only be used for a bakery, butchery, or deli since it didn’t have the proper zoning for a restaurant.

“We decided to go with the bakery option because of Miki’s experience and the fact that it had a day trading license that would allow us to have a few tables and chairs and sell coffee and light meals,” Christie told How We Made It in Africa.

In 2002, the business launched as a corner street-style bakery and café, serving breakfasts, thin-crust gourmet pizzas and café style Mediterranean food.

On the opening, Christie was left to open the store alone, since Milovanovic was sorting out his Visa Serbia.

“I had my mother, my sister and my grandmother in the kitchen. I was quite excited. I had a lot of friends coming to the launch, and I wasn’t thinking about success or failure.

“I was just thinking about that night, just getting it right. And from day one, it was a success. So we were lucky.”

Over time, the bakery, which became famous for its artisan ciabatta, evolved into a full-service, Mediterranean-inspired restaurant.

In the beginning, Victor Strugo, one of South Africa’s top food journalists and critics, gave Doppio a good review, which also helped accelerate its popularity.

“He wrote us a decent review, and the next day, we went up 20%,” Christie told The Money Show. “It was just word of mouth. We never spent a cent on marketing.”

It wasn’t long before the pair started expanding the business. In the second year, they opened their second restaurant in Bedfordview, and within two and a half years, their footprint had grown to three restaurants.

During this time, they had to work extremely hard and work long hours at their restaurants. Starting as a bakery, they worked six days a week from five in the morning until ten at night. After a year, though, they decided to stay open seven days a week.

“I had a partner so we were lucky to share the load, but when we opened two, three restaurants it became quite a lot.”

“In four years, I was in the shop daily, so it’s a lot of hard work. When you open a lot of restaurants, there are going to be some issues like fighting with the landlords, getting finance from the banks, and staffing issues.”

“All in all, it was great fun; we had a good time, but there are definitely ups and downs.”

In 2009, Christie and Milovanovic finally realised their dream of opening an Italian restaurant when they founded Piza e Vino.

“Piza e Vino is very much aimed around pizzas, as the name suggests. We try to create something that is about pizza and wine,” Neil Griffiths, group operations manager for Piza e Vino explained to Africa Outlook.

“I think we are an upmarket, modern outlet, aiming at all age groups but most of our clientele are young and trendy.”

In 2013, just over a decade after its founding, the group employed just over a thousand people and had a turnover of roughly R200 million a year.

The pair also launched Modern Tailors, an Indian restaurant which currently has two locations in Rosebank and Groenkloof.

In 2023, the Spur Corporation acquired a 60% interest in the Doppio Collection, which includes restaurant brands Doppio Zero, Piza e Vino, and Modern Tailors.

“The portfolio has 37 franchised and company-owned restaurants, as well as Doppio’s bakery and central supply business,” Spur explained.

“The Doppio Collection is an exciting addition to our portfolio. Doppio Collection is being acquired from founders and shareholders, Paul Christie and Miki Milovanovic, who will remain the directors and continue to run the business.”

“The Doppio Collection will nearly double the Spur Corporation speciality portfolio, enabling the group to substantially increase its share of the speciality day-time dining market.”

Today, Doppio has 30 restaurants in South Africa and another in Botswana.