​Burger King UK Plans to Open 60 New Restaurants in Whopper Expansion

Burger King UK has secured an additional £35 million in funding from its shareholder, Bridgepoint. This funding will facilitate the fast-food giant's ambitious goal of adding more than 60 new restaurants to its portfolio over the next two years. Håkan Dahlström from Malmö, Sweden, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In 2022, the company grew significantly by opening 32 new Burger King UK-owned restaurants and acquiring 74 more from its largest franchising partner, Karali Group. Additionally, a substantial remodelling effort was undertaken, with 32 restaurants receiving upgrades and a £1 million investment in its flagship restaurant located in London's Leicester Square. Burger King UK has plans to revamp ten more restaurants in 2023.

The chain reported a substantial increase in total revenue, reaching £294.5 million in 2022, marking a remarkable 39% growth. Furthermore, like-for-like sales experienced an 11% increase.

However, despite these positive developments, the underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) decreased significantly, falling to £15.2 million in 2022 from £33.1 million in the previous year. The chain attributed this decline to a "significant rise" in food inflation and higher energy prices.

Dinkun Chen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

For the year, Burger King UK reported an operating loss of £20.6 million, in contrast to a profit of £33.5 million in 2021. This shift can be partially attributed to the acquisition of the 74 Karali Group restaurants.

Alasdair Murdoch, the Chief Executive of Burger King UK, commented on the company's performance, saying, "We have continued our rapid expansion in the UK and achieved substantial growth during the year, despite facing industry-wide challenges. Looking ahead, we see significant opportunities for further growth and are encouraged by the strong pipeline of new openings, supported by additional funding from Bridgepoint."

As of September 27, 2023, Burger King UK operates a total of 553 restaurants, with 279 of them being directly owned by the company. The remaining restaurants are sub-franchised.