Flavian Dobre: From gastronomy to film – Building scalable multi-industry ecosystems

Flavian Dobre, a multi-industry entrepreneur, blends food, hospitality, manufacturing, and film to create scalable ecosystems and brands with personality. Discover his journey and lessons on discipline, innovation, and leadership.

Flavian Dobre is a multi-industry entrepreneur operating simultaneously in food, hospitality, food manufacturing, and the film industry, building a complex ecosystem of brands and business lines. His portfolio includes Pasticceria Flavian Dobre, KNL Chicken, Taste OnSet, Master Bakery, Moara cu Noroc, and Dr Gusto — the largest chocolate decoration factory in Eastern Europe, a project with global ambitions — as well as Buftea Film Studios and the production house Cine Couture, with all departments integrated: set design, makeup, construction, electrical, camera, sound, SFX, VFX, and post-production. His business model works transversally, combining creation, operations, and technology on a platform built for local and international scaling.

C&B: If we were to look at a narrative thread in your career, what were the key moments that defined you?

Flavian: My journey has three defining stages. The first was professional training and experience in international competitions, where I learned rigor, technique, and discipline. The second was entering entrepreneurship and creating brands in the food & hospitality sector, from Pasticceria to KNL Chicken and Taste OnSet, where I understood what product, process, and scaling truly mean. The third stage is the current one, where I build multi-industry ecosystems — food, manufacturing, retail, trading, traditional horeca, and film — with operational logic and international ambition. This is the stage where gastronomy meets industry and entertainment.

C&B: What has been the biggest challenge since launching KNL Chicken, and how did you overcome it?

Flavian: Differentiation in a crowded segment. Fried chicken is beloved but hard to elevate beyond the “commodity” zone and very difficult to scale consistently. We had to work simultaneously on product, process, and brand — recipe, texture, seasoning, time management, and visual identity. When all of these started working together, KNL moved from being “just another brand” to a “brand with personality” and, more importantly, a “scalable brand.”

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?

Flavian: Yes — to set a standard. In Romanian gastronomy, people often jump to inspiration and struggle with discipline. My dream has been to prove that you can raise the level in an industry if you build process, technology, brand, and team, not just product.

C&B: How did you look at the beginning of your journey, and how do you feel you have transformed until now?

Flavian: At the start, I was a technician obsessed with details. Today, I am an entrepreneur working across entire industries — food, manufacturing, trading, retail, horeca, film, and entertainment. I’ve learned that technique without vision remains craftsmanship, and vision without execution remains a story.

C&B: If we met with your team or collaborators, what do you think they would say about you?

Flavian: That I am demanding, quick to decide, and hard to satisfy. I believe they would also say that I am fair, accountable, and persistent. In business, loyalty and responsibility weigh more than initial enthusiasm.

C&B: What is the most important decision you have made that changed your trajectory?

Flavian: Not to remain in a single industry. Pastry shaped my discipline, but expanding into street food, manufacturing, film catering, traditional retail, and filmmaking opened my appetite for ecosystems, not just brands. That’s where everything changed.

C&B: How did you develop your leadership style or decision-making approach? Was it a natural process or learned?

Flavian: Partly instinct, partly maturation. In the kitchen, you learn rhythm; in film, you learn coordination; and in manufacturing, you learn process and the cost of error. My leadership is a combination of craft and strategy, responsibility and scalability.

C&B: What makes KNL Chicken different from other street food options or fried chicken restaurants in the local market?

Flavian: The difference is in the system. Marination, flour, spices, frying, and timing are industrially standardized, not left to “eyeballing.” The brand also has an aesthetic and a voice that set it apart from the “generic” category.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and which moments of the day bring you the most satisfaction?

Flavian: My days are divided between product development, operations, film, and manufacturing. Satisfaction comes from progress — a new product that works, a location that performs, a shoot that comes out flawlessly, a factory hitting its rhythm, a cultural project beginning to breathe.

C&B: What values or principles guide you in what you do, and how do you apply them day by day?

Flavian: Respect for the product, respect for people, and discipline. Discipline beats talent and enthusiasm in any industry.

C&B: How did the idea of KNL Chicken come about, and what inspired you to start a brand dedicated to such a beloved product as fried chicken?

Flavian: From curiosity and dissatisfaction. I wondered why fried chicken hadn’t been elevated to the level burgers or pizza had reached. I wanted to see if I could transform a popular product into a premium product, with identity and a scalable model.

C&B: What plans do you have for KNL Chicken — local expansion, franchises, new menu items, collaborations?

Flavian: KNL is built for scaling through both franchises and company-owned units. Local and regional expansions are next, along with entries into malls and airports, plus a menu adapted to different markets. Collaborations are inevitable, but we want them to be intelligent, not just commercial.

Flavian Dobre’s journey shows that success comes not only from passion but from discipline, strategy, and the ability to build sustainable ecosystems.