Fast food restaurant chain Burger King is planning to expand its footprint in the UK by opening 60 new restaurants over the next two years, according to a report by the Independent.
The fast food restaurant currently operates 553 restaurants in the country.
The restaurant business, which has been owned by private equity Bridgepoint since 2017, reported higher sales but a dip in profits for the past year.
Burger King UK chief executive Alasdair Murdoch explained that the business "delivered good growth during the year, despite industry-wide headwinds” amid significant inflation for both energy and food.
The news agency quoted Murdoch as saying: “I am pleased to announce a resilient full-year performance and strong strategic progress in 2022 as we announce ambitious plans to open 60 new restaurants over the next two years.
“Alongside new restaurant openings and the acquisition of our largest franchise partner, Karali Group, we continued our strategic focus on growing digital sales, including home delivery and the introduction of our loyalty scheme on the Burger King app.
“We also continued to invest in our customer proposition – our remodeling programme is well underway with 42 restaurants being upgraded during 2022 and 2023 and we are progressing our menu innovation to cater to all preferences.”
In the UK, Burger King directly operates 279 restaurants while the remaining sites are run as franchises.
In August this year, Bridgepoint was reportedly in talks with Restaurant Brands International (RBI), the parent company of Burger King, for a new franchise deal.
