Business

Fast-food giant opening more stores across South Africa

Luke Fraser

 ·22 Oct 2025

Famous Brands has opened 70 new restaurants in just six months, despite the challenging retail environment in the market in which it operates. 

In its interim results for the six months ended 31 August 2025, the group said it saw strong network growth, with the openings of 70 new restaurants and 103 revamps completed.

There were also positive gains for its drive-thru network, with five drive-thrus opened, bringing its drive-thru footprint to 77 restaurants. 

In South Africa, its leading brands, including Wimpy, Steers, Debonairs, Mugg & Bean and more, opened  53 new stores over the period. 

Leading Brands also saw 103 store revamps and one restaurant converted. However, 10 stores were closed. 

Famous Brands said that its Leading Brands’ saw system-wide sales increase by 6.0%, and like-for-like sales increased by 2.6%. 

Restaurant sales were boosted by increased local tourism and increased traffic resulting from return-to-office mandates. 

“We expanded our footprint of smaller restaurant formats and drive-thrus to meet consumer demand for convenience,” said the group. 

Elsewhere, the group’s Signature Brands in South Africa, which include Turn n Tender, Vovo Telo, Mythos, Netcare and more, opened six new stores. 

“The Signature Brands portfolio delivered softer results than anticipated, driven by lower consumer demand for premium dining out,” said the group. 

Like-for-like sales and system-wide sales in the Signature Brands portfolio dropped by 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively.

The group’s Operating loss margin also rose to 7.0% from 6.7%. Amid these challenges, 10 Signature Brands were closed during the period. 

Going international, the SADC region experienced steady growth, with revenue increasing by 2.7% to R224 million. 

Operating profit did decline by 11.8% to R24 billion, with the operating profit margin dropping by 10.9% over the period. 

With the mixed performance in the SADC region, the group opened eight new stores, but closed five over the period. 

In the Africa and Middle East (AME) region, the group saw 12 restaurants close over the period, with only one opened in the area. 

“Revenue in AME declined by 5.4% to R33 million. Several markets are experiencing tough trading conditions and high inflation,” said the group. 

“We are undergoing a legal process in the UAE with our multiple-store franchise partner. We have recorded six restaurants in the UAE as closed.

“We have been cautious about new opportunities and opened one franchised restaurant, which was a second Debonairs Pizza in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.” 

In the UK, revenue declined by 5.7% to R65 million, with two restaurants closed and only two opened. 

“The UK restaurant industry has been battling with cost pressures, cautious consumers and economic uncertainty, resulting in constrained sales.” 

Financials

The group noted that its financial performance demonstrated strong momentum, with positive results across key financial metrics.

Our financial performance demonstrated strong momentum, with positive results across key financial metrics.

Revenue rose by 5.6% to R4.2 billion and operating profit increased by 5.8% to R393 million.

The group’s headline earnings per share (HEPS) increased by 8.0% to 236 cents, while basic earnings per share (BEPS) increased by 6.8% to 236 cents.