The UK’s fast food market was worth an estimated £37.9bn in 2024, according to market researcher Mintel. A fast food franchise can offer brilliant opportunities for those who are prepared to take a bite out of a competitive market.
Thinking of opening a fast food franchise? Read expert tips on how to get started and see your business thrive.
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Whether you’ve always had a passion for food or are simply keen to open a franchise in a popular market, a fast food franchise offers a tantalising prospect thanks to the flexibility of its business model.
“Fast food outlets thrive by offering dine-in, delivery, drive-through, and click-and-collect options to suit various preferences,” says Trish Caddy, associate director of foodservice at Mintel.
In the post-Covid landscape, dining out is increasingly popular, up from 24% in 2021 to 47% in 2024, according to data from Mintel. But while takeaway orders fell to 72% in 2024, it remains a huge part of the market as convenience is crucial, Trish says.
As an easy grab-and-go option, a fast food restaurant franchise can also sate busy consumers’ appetites at any time of the day.
"British consumers are more flexible in their fast food habits, moving away from traditional evening dining,” Trish explains. “Morning and afternoon fast food occasions have increased post-pandemic, suggesting a broader role for fast food in daily diets. This opens up opportunities for operators to expand menus and target new customer segments.”
With numerous fast food franchise opportunities to explore, read on to dive into the details of how to set up a successful restaurant.
The first step to starting your fast food franchise is choosing a cuisine and zeroing in on a franchisor. While many options are available, burgers remain a top choice for consumers.
In fact, McDonald’s is set to spend £1bn opening 200 new restaurants in the UK and Ireland. Premium burger concepts offering high-quality ingredients are also taking off.
But that’s not to say new entrants can’t also make waves in the sector. The popularity of fried chicken shops, including brands such as Miss Millie's, has led to new growth opportunities for these franchises, according to industry analyst Plimsoll.
Meanwhile, ethnic food chains like Pepe’s Piri Piri and Chopstix are also on the rise, reflecting evolving preferences and the popularity of diverse cuisines, Mintel’s analysis found.
“Younger fast food consumers aged 16-44 prefer fresh options like salads and sushi, providing chains with an opportunity to attract them with healthy choices. Salad chains like The Salad Project and Urban Greens are gaining traction in London, hinting at potential for salad concepts in the UK market,” Trish says.
When looking at franchisors, the industry is dominated by well-known (and loved) names, like McDonald’s, KFC and Burger King. Choosing to align with a brand with strong name recognition is one option for potential franchisees.
Lucy Harman, a Domino’s franchise partner in Hayling Island has benefited from the franchisor’s well-known name. “By working with a large brand, and in the case of Domino's, the nation's best-loved pizza, you are able to benefit from its national presence.
"We are also given huge marketing opportunities which enable us to reach our customers across so many different platforms. That's a huge advantage for us,” she says.
On the other hand, Adam Khan, founder of 12th Street Burgers says a small-to-medium sized brand which is quickly opening in more areas gives prospective franchisees the opportunity to jump into lucrative markets.
“We have prime locations available for people to grab at this stage of our journey. Maybe in a year's time they may not be available. But right now it's a great time to come and take those prime locations to develop a 12th Street Burger network.
"With any of the big brands, those opportunities are gone now. So I think there is a great opportunity for hungry entrepreneurs to come and snatch those premium locations,” Adam says.
The best fast food franchises balance a quality product with convenience and affordability, so it’s no surprise the quick-service restaurant sector is known for its tight margins.
With costs rising for raw materials, energy and premises, as well as staffing, there’s growing pressure on these profit margins.
Challenges for the fast food franchise market include:
“The biggest challenge currently that everybody's facing is inflation,” Adam says. “The cost of goods is rising all the time.”
The key is finding a balance, and as a former franchisee himself, this is something Adam understands first-hand. “I consciously make sure that every week we review our costs and prices. Whenever we can, we go and negotiate better prices from suppliers,” he says.
Lucy agrees that the current economic environment – particularly managing the balance between inflation, employee costs and product pricing – is a challenge. But her top concern is managing competition within her area. “We want to be the top choice every time and stand out.”
While you can’t start a new business without facing at least a few bumps in the road, fast food franchises have opportunities to offer savvy entrepreneurs, including:
“The UK is one of the most exciting food and beverage markets around the globe,” says Khalil Rehman, co-founder at Caprinos Pizza. “It is built on its reputation for new product innovation, creative marketing and flavour combinations,” he says.
Franchisees who embrace this and work to bring an exciting and affordable value proposition to customers will be the ones who unlock long-term, sustainable growth.
Previous experience can be a big help when starting a fast food franchise, but it’s not all about your CV. 12th Street Burgers provides a thorough training programme to ensure franchisees will be successful no matter their prior experience.
“We give [franchisees] a good three-week training programme in two of our company stores to give them a flavour of two different environments and two different business demographics, so they are more prepared,” Adam says.
“When they open, we send one of our franchise managers to stay in their store for a period of a further ten days, at our expense, to make sure any teething problems are taken care of and further training is given on site.”
The training then continues for a new franchisee’s first three months, from spelling out budgets so they avoid any financial trouble to being on hand to answer questions.
“We want to make sure that we are guiding them the right way, until we know that these guys are comfortable enough to just get on with it,” Adam says. This approach has been very popular with franchisees.
Even Lucy, who had 16 years of experience at Domino’s before opening her own franchise, found there’s a “massive learning curve” when starting out.
“As soon as you become a franchisee, there’s nobody to fall back on anymore. You need the answer to everything for your team.” Even with the support of Domino’s, she says the newfound responsibility was intimidating.
Having the drive to want to build your business and a passion for your brand are two key factors for success, Lucy says. “You learn something new almost every day, so it's about taking on as much advice as possible – we can never know everything. Some people will give you some advice you may never have thought of.”
Managing everything from the shop operations and marketing to menu campaigns and finances, Lucy says, “I've learnt so much already and the learning never stops, which is one of the attractive parts of becoming a franchisee.”
When choosing the right business to invest in, your fast food franchise’s cost is one of the most important factors to consider.
Adam is proud of 12th Street Burgers’ low-cost investment model. “You can have a full-blown Express store for around £90,000 to £100,000. We're probably the cheapest in the market,” he says. In terms of return on investment, franchisees can make their money back within two years, he says.
For Lucy, training every single person in her team from scratch up to a high standard was one of her biggest challenges.
But the payoff is that by looking after your team, they’ll look after you and your shop. “They can be the backbone behind whether your franchise is a success or not, as it will be very difficult to run it on your own,” she says.
Whatever cuisine you serve, Adam says product is everything for a new franchisee. “In the market today, you have to have a superior product,” he explains. “If you’re using frozen stuff, it doesn’t work.”
12th Street Burgers’ menu features bespoke sauces made for the brand to add another point of differentiation. “Even if someone wants to replicate or copy, they can't go and buy any of our sauces off the shelf,” he says. “If you want to stay ahead, your products have to speak for themselves.”
To run a successful food franchise, you’ll need to be fully involved in day-to-day operations and know all the ins and outs of your business. But before you take that first step, Lucy says, think location, location location.
“Make sure you've done your research into the opportunity, but also the local area. It's really important that you can settle into the local area and get to know your customers – it can make a real difference.”
To take advantage of the potential benefits the fast food industry has to offer, franchisees must be willing to adopt new innovations, like menu diversification, delivery technologies and more.
Trish Caddy from Mintel explains that fast food apps are growing in popularity with younger age groups, with 48% of 16-34 year-olds using them.
“German Doner Kebab's app gained 270,000 downloads by December 2023, showing the trend towards mobile ordering,” she says. “User-friendly apps like GDK's cater to the rising mobile tech reliance for tasks such as food ordering.”
By understanding the possible setbacks and opportunities on the path to success, potential franchisees can capitalise on consumers’ hunger for fast food.
If you're interested in buying a fast food franchise, browse our wide range of franchise opportunities. You can also browse pizza franchises, restaurant franchises and food franchises in general.
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