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What Is a Franchise? A UK Guide to How Franchising Works
04/09/2026The British Franchise Association's 2024 National Franchise Survey put the sector's contribution to the UK economy at £19.1 billion across 1,009 systems and 50,421 units. Unlike France or the United States, the UK has no franchise-specific statute. This guide sets…
Fireaway Pizza opens its first convenience store concession
04/09/2026Fireaway Pizza has opened a concession inside a convenience store, launching a pizza counter within the Welcome Rickmansworth store run by Southern Co-op franchise partner Dilan Patel. Fireaway operates 160 UK restaurants and has opened more than 100 of them…
Houston Hot Chicken, backed by PizzaExpress, confirms second UK restaurant
03/09/2026PizzaExpress, which holds the UK franchise rights to Houston Hot Chicken, will open the American hot chicken chain's second UK restaurant this winter at the Brunswick Centre in Bloomsbury. The opening follows Houston Hot Chicken's first UK site in Stevenage,…
Din Tai Fung to open fifth London restaurant, in King’s Cross
03/09/2026Din Tai Fung, the Taiwanese dumpling chain operated in the UK under franchise by Singapore's BreadTalk Group, will open its fifth London restaurant at Lewis Cubitt Walk in King's Cross this December. The site adds to existing restaurants in Covent…
Caffè Nero owner posts record £670m sales
03/09/2026The Nero Group, owner of Caffè Nero, posted record sales of £670 million for the year to 31 May 2026, up 8% on the previous year, as its core coffee brand delivered like-for-like growth of 4.5%. The group opened 72…
Bunsik opens in Coventry and Birmingham, its first Midlands sites
03/09/2026Korean street food chain Bunsik will open two Midlands sites this autumn, in Coventry this month and at Birmingham's Bullring in October, extending its franchise partnership with ZK Group after the operator's earlier launch in Plymouth. The Midlands debut continues…
Raising Cane’s to open first UK restaurant in London
03/09/2026Raising Cane's, the American chicken fingers chain that has overtaken KFC to become the third-largest chicken restaurant business in the United States, has confirmed its first UK restaurant will open in Piccadilly Circus in late 2026. The London flagship will…
Black Sheep Coffee opens first UK drive-thru, in Blackburn
02/09/2026Black Sheep Coffee opened its first UK drive-thru this week, a new format at Townsmoor Retail Park in Blackburn built and run by a Lancashire-based franchise team. The site is the coffee chain's second in the county after a Lancaster…
Radley London closes all UK stores after 28 years, brand sold in pre-pack administration
02/09/2026Radley London closed its remaining UK stores this week, 28 years after the handbag and accessories brand launched at Camden Market. The closures follow a pre-pack administration in May 2026, in which FTI Consulting was appointed administrator and Gordon Brothers…
Sun, sea and sausage rolls – Greggs eyes expansion abroad again
01/06/2026British bakery chain Greggs is opening its first overseas outlet in nearly two decades at Tenerife South Airport later this month, in partnership with Lagardere Travel Retail. The shop will sit in the international departures area and target the roughly…
