John Kenneth Pepper
Episode · #625
FRANŠIZNI KLUB John Kent Pepper
Guest John Kenneth PepperHosted by Darko BukovićMay 3, 2026
John Kenneth Pepper
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation
John Kent Pepper made a seemingly backward move: leaving New York for Croatia without a clear business plan. While many pursue the American dream, Pepper and his wife sought a quieter life, landing in Split. His background was in advertising, his hobby was baking bread. What started as an expatriate's quest for an authentic taste of home—a proper bagel—quickly revealed a market gap. He found that what Croatians called a bagel was often just a roll with a hole. This realization transformed a personal craving into Brooklyn Bagel, a business now ready for franchising after five years. This conversation unpacks how to build a business by identifying what's missing, adapting to local nuances, and preparing for the unexpected. As Pepper puts it, "If you knew all obstacles, you wouldn't start in the first place."
Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
John Kent Pepper moved from the fast pace of New York to Split, Croatia, with no business plan, only an interest in baking. Significant opportunities often arise not from a grand strategy, but from an openness to unexpected possibilities in a new environment.
02
Before starting Brooklyn Bagel, Pepper tasted every "bagel" he could find in Croatia, only to realize they were common rolls with a hole. A significant market opportunity often lies in introducing an authentic, high-quality version of a product that's already superficially known but poorly executed.
03
The fundamental difference between a true bagel and a regular roll, Pepper explains, is that a bagel is first boiled, then baked. This unique process creates the thin, crispy crust and dense, soft interior that defines the product, proving that a specific, non-obvious step can be the entire value proposition.
04
Brooklyn Bagel initially tried supplying hotels and cafes, but found that local partners didn't know how to sell the product effectively. Opening his own store in Split's Old Town was the only way to demonstrate the bagel's appeal, showing that market education sometimes requires direct control over the end-user experience.
05
Pepper's father advised him to research all reasons an idea might fail, which Pepper now calls "bad advice." You cannot insulate a business from future uncertainties like a pandemic; preparing for every possible failure is a trap that prevents starting at all.
06
Confronted with customers confusing bagels with donuts, Pepper's favorite Croatian phrase became "nije krafna" (it's not a donut). When bringing a foreign product to a new market, you often have to first clarify common misconceptions by explicitly stating what it isn't, before you can explain what it is.
07
During a pop-up sale, Pepper found himself showing pictures of bagels with cream cheese to customers because they didn't understand how to eat them. Even for seemingly simple foods, the creator's intimate knowledge of consumption habits does not transfer automatically to an unfamiliar audience; visual context is essential.
08
Achieving an authentic New York bagel required Pepper's team to spend hours tracking down the right dried garlic powder, an ingredient not easily found locally. True product authenticity often depends on the meticulous sourcing of specific, seemingly small components that collectively define its character.
09
Pepper emphasizes putting Croatia first, with all materials bilingual and Croatian-first, and actively learning the language. Rather than imposing an imported culture, successful market entry involves respectfully integrating into the local society and adapting the offering to its context.
10
Despite running a business with three locations in Split, Pepper and his wife live on the island of Brač, surrounded by "neighbor's sheep," enabled by reliable internet. The ability to separate residence from primary business location, leveraging digital connectivity, offers a lifestyle freedom once impossible for business owners.