Honest Burgers CEO Thomas Kelly stated that the casual food chain’s goal is to quadruple its business in six years.
The brand, which currently has 39 restaurants across England and Wales, has ambitious plans to grow its presence beyond London by expanding further north, according to chief executive Thomas Kelly.
He said the group was planning to move into cities such as Birmingham for the first time and possibly expand its presence in Manchester and Liverpool.
The staged system will begin with 15 new openings over the next 18 months, and the Honest Burgers model is flexible and adaptable to different premises sizes.
The expansion begins with Honest’s new quick service Smash Burger concept, which was first announced in 2023. At the end of last year, the brand received nearly £3 million in crowdfunding to support the expansion and rollout of this new concept.
Honest has been testing smashed items at its existing locations, including this month’s special – the double smashed burger.
“It took two years to perfect, and when we’re ready to launch the concept, we’re going to make sure it’s a really good burger that customers want to buy,” Kelly said.
He added that the Honest branding will remain intact, with only the messaging surrounding the broken launch being tailored for the new site.
However, Kelly said the company will continue to focus on its existing locations during the expansion process.
“We have to worry about our business, not what we might have. If you take your eyes off your business, you have no basis to grow,” he added.
Thomas Kelly started as CEO of Honest in January, his leadership at McDonald’s in Finland and Sweden.