---
title: "Inland Empire Business Journal: California natives Shawki Mahfouz, Peter Paul and Mira and George Ibrahim to Open California’s first SoBol"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/19819cd1-6e3f-4eb9-ba5b-9b43f3ba1c18
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/inland-empire-business-journal-california-natives-shawki-mahfouz-peter-paul-and-mira-and-george-ibrahim-to-open-californias-first-sobol-2712407
category: "Fast casual"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fast casual"
topics: ["Development & multi-unit"]
published: 2020-02-28T19:14:03.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:30:15.959Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/375d2fa6977157a30e53046903338f961396.jpg
---

# Inland Empire Business Journal: California natives Shawki Mahfouz, Peter Paul and Mira and George Ibrahim to Open California’s first SoBol

**TL;DR:** California natives Shawki Mahfouz, Peter Paul, and siblings Mira and George Ibrahim are opening the first SoBol location in California. The brand, which specializes in acai bowls and smoothies, is expanding its footprint after a period of growth in 2019.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2020-02-28. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/inland-empire-business-journal-california-natives-shawki-mahfouz-peter-paul-and-mira-and-george-ibrahim-to-open-californias-first-sobol-2712407).*

## Story

**Since it first opened its doors in 2014, SoBol has taken the east coast by storm specializing in acai bowls, green bowls, smoothies and more. Due to a tremendous amount of growth in 2019, the brand is on track to continue expanding its footprint in 2020, most recently with its Chino Hills opening . The grand opening took place on February 5th at the Crossroads Entertainment Center in Chino, CA.

According to the article, SoBol celebrated the opening by offering the first 50 customers a free acai bowl and the 100th customer got to walk home with a $100 SoBol gift card, according to Inland Empire Business Journal.

**According to the article, Cousins Shawki Mahfouz and Peter Paul wanted to partner with siblings Mira and George Ibrahim to bring the health-focused franchise to their community, as the California state is generally known for prioritizing a healthy lifestyle and diet, which aligns to the 4 franchisee’s idealoligies. The article mentions that Mahfouz operated four gas stations for his family before making the transition to SoBol.**

**Mahfouz mentions in the article, “More and more people nowadays are always looking for a healthy and satisfying alternative”, which supports why the brand was able to sign 35 new franchisee contracts in 2019 alone. Paul also points out SoBol as a motivator for himself: “When I tasted SoBol for the first time, I was convinced that the brand could aid in my quest towards a healthier, yet more appetizing lifestyle”.**

**The brand prides itself on using the freshest ingredients possible due to ingredients being delivered every day of the week from local farms. The article also notes their smoothies are made-to-order without using ice, powers or syrups, are allergy-friendly and have a variety of toppings, including their exclusive homemade granola, made with all natural ingredients.**

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- unit expansion (topic)
- franchise growth (topic)
- new location (topic)
- California (location)
- healthy lifestyle (topic)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/inland-empire-business-journal-california-natives-shawki-mahfouz-peter-paul-and-mira-and-george-ibrahim-to-open-californias-first-sobol-2712407). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/19819cd1-6e3f-4eb9-ba5b-9b43f3ba1c18).