But who are the main players in the industry and what does the future of the burger business look like?<\/p>\n
Fragmented industry<\/p>\n
First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson said increased channels such as delivery had removed the importance of location in growing takeaway businesses.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce upon a time your competitor was the guy down the road. Now that competitor could be in another district,\u201d Wilkinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could actually be anywhere and have a site fulfilling that local market. In the old days you\u2019d be thinking I want to have that corner site, I need that brand visibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wilkinson said younger consumers were making decisions purely based on reviews or what they\u2019d seen on social media such as TikTok, meaning a business\u2019 site could easily be located in a forgotten residential area.<\/p>\n
For those smaller businesses looking to grow, Wilkinson said maintaining a tight menu and strong discipline around buying and portion control was critical.<\/p>\n
He also recommended technology to automate processes such as ordering, noting that while traditional service was fine, technology offers scalability.<\/p>\n
Biggest burger chains<\/p>\n
The Herald has compiled a list of New Zealand\u2019s largest burger chains to see who really is top of the pile.<\/p>\n
For this list, the Herald considered burger chains with more than five locations, and those with a menu focused specifically on burgers \u2013 so KFC, Popeyes and Chicking were not considered.<\/p>\n
McDonald’s is still the largest player in New Zealand’s burger market.<\/p>\n
McDonald\u2019s New Zealand<\/p>\n
To the surprise of no one, McDonald\u2019s New Zealand takes the top spot as New Zealand\u2019s largest burger chain.<\/p>\n
First opened in Porirua in 1976, McDonald\u2019s has grown to 177 sites across New Zealand, with six more to come over the next year \u2013 including recent news of a fourth location in Palmerston North.<\/p>\n
Employing around 12,000 part and fulltime staff, McDonald\u2019s has about one million people through its doors every week.<\/p>\n
A 2024 snapshot of McDonald\u2019s New Zealand showed it spent $235 million on local produce for the domestic market and exported $287m of it to its restaurants worldwide.<\/p>\n
McDonald\u2019s New Zealand has 22 burgers on its menu, ranging from the classic Big Mac and McChicken to the Almighty Texan BBQ, with prices from $4.40 for a Hamburger to $16.60 for a Double McCrispy.<\/p>\n
Burger King has had a turbulent history, but remains New Zealand’s second largest player in the burger market. Pictured is the company’s former logo. Photo \/ 123rf<\/p>\n
Burger King<\/p>\n
Up next is major rival \u2013 Burger King. With 79 locations across New Zealand and about 1800 employees, the challenger has had a turbulent history here.<\/p>\n
Opening in New Zealand nearly 20 years after its competitor in 1993, the business has cycled through various owners and franchise operators over the past three decades.<\/p>\n
The franchise was initially brought here by Auckland entrepreneurs Dennis Jones and Mark Backhaus, with oil company Shell New Zealand acquiring 50% of the business in 1996.<\/p>\n
Jones and Backhaus then bought out two of their former business partners, James Barger and Australian Graeme Plum, and Shell New Zealand, to acquire control of Burger King in a deal understood to be worth up to $30m.<\/p>\n
At the time, the business had 60 restaurants, which held up to 20% market share and had annual sales of more than $90m.<\/p>\n
Then in 2009, Sydney-based Anchorage Capital Partners acquired the business for between $50m and $150m.<\/p>\n
Two years later, US private equity firm Blackstone Group bought the business for $108m, acquiring the exclusive franchise development rights for the brand in New Zealand and its 75 locations.<\/p>\n
Blackstone Group held on to the business until 2020, when Covid lockdowns and mounting debt forced the local holding company Tango Holdings into receivership, owing creditors more than $50m.<\/p>\n
Receivers Brendon Gibson and Grant Graham of Calibre Partners then sold the chain to investment company Tahua Partners, the owners of the Starbucks and Popeyes franchises in New Zealand, for $30.48m.<\/p>\n
Burger King today has about 48 burgers on its menu, with prices ranging from $4.50 for a Hamburger to $21.50 for a Triple Rodeo Mega Stacker.<\/p>\n
BurgerFuel Worldwide directors Josef Roberts (left) and Chris Mason (right) with Middle East master franchisee Abdulla Fouad Group directors Hamad Albuali and Sheikh Faisal.<\/p>\n
Burger Fuel Group<\/p>\n
The first locally owned chain on the list, BurgerFuel is the next largest player in New Zealand\u2019s burger market.<\/p>\n
Founded by Kiwi Chris Mason, BurgerFuel opened its first store in 1995 on Auckland\u2019s Ponsonby Rd as he aimed to share his take on \u201cthe gourmet burger\u201d.<\/p>\n
The business began to grow, bringing on Red Bull Australasia founder Josef Roberts before listing on the New Zealand Exchange in 2007.<\/p>\n
Then, in a first for a New Zealand-owned burger business, BurgerFuel took its products to the Middle East, opening a 200-seater restaurant in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, in 2010, before adding a store in Dubai later the same year. Both locations are still in operation under franchise.<\/p>\n
BurgerFuel next took its offering to the United States, opening a store in Indianapolis in 2017, although the business exited the territory three years later.<\/p>\n
The business also spun out a sister company in 2018 called Shake Out, offering a simplified menu for lower prices. <\/p>\n
Shake Out has three physical stores and 26 virtual kitchens operating out of BurgerFuel stores. If it were independent, Shake Out would be the fifth-largest burger player in the market.<\/p>\n
Today, BurgerFuel has 62 stores across New Zealand, with new locations soon to open at Auckland International Airport, Nelson and Huapai, taking the network to 65 sites.<\/p>\n
The company has about 1000 fulltime and part-time employees, and generated $108m in sales for the 12 months ended March 31, 2026.<\/p>\n
BurgerFuel has 26 different burgers on its menu, with prices ranging from $9 for a Hamburgini with Cheese to $22.50 for a Parmageddon burger.<\/p>\n
RE Burger founder Boris Reiber at the first of his restaurants that fast became a national franchise. Photo \/ Ben Tomsett<\/p>\n
RE Burger<\/p>\n
The quietly rising challenger on the block, RE Burger has become one of the largest mid-tier players in the New Zealand burger market.<\/p>\n
RE Burger began as a food truck in 2016 founded by former chef Boris Reiber (the name is a play on its owner\u2019s surname), who wanted to bring a slice of London\u2019s street food magic to the streets of Dunedin.<\/p>\n
The business opened its first bricks-and-mortar location in Dunedin in September 2017. <\/p>\n
In the next four years, Reiber opened just as many stores, until the burgeoning franchise hit critical mass and RE Burger bars began sprouting up exponentially across New Zealand.<\/p>\n
RE Burger has expanded to 37 locations across New Zealand, averaging three to four new sites every year since it started.<\/p>\n
The mid-tier player has 38 burgers on its menu, with prices starting at $8.90 for a Lil\u2019 Cheese and rising to $22.90 for a Renegade Double.<\/p>\n
Burger franchise Burger Wisconsin has been sold to the owners of Mexicali fresh. Photo \/ Hawke’s Bay Today.<\/p>\n
Burger Wisconsin<\/p>\n
Next up in the mid-tier is one of New Zealand\u2019s oldest burger joints, Burger Wisconsin.<\/p>\n
Founded by Mick Davenport in the Wellington suburb of Wadestown in 1989, the business is self-described as \u201cNew Zealand\u2019s oldest gourmet burger franchise\u201d.<\/p>\n
The chain claims to have introduced combinations such as avocado and bacon and camembert and cranberry to the New Zealand takeaway market, which are now considered Kiwi staples.<\/p>\n
Burger Wisconsin was sold to Steve Hanna and Tim Stewart in mid-2005 for an undisclosed sum. They owned and operated the business for 10 years.<\/p>\n
In 2015 the business was then acquired by Mariposa Restaurant Holdings, the owners of Mexican food franchise Mexicali Fresh.<\/p>\n
Mariposa Restaurant Holdings\u2019 largest shareholder is Mirage Property Investments, owned by the co-founder of internet company ihug, Tim Wood.<\/p>\n
Today, Burger Wisconsin has 20 locations across the country, all run by local franchisees.<\/p>\n
Burger Wisconsin has 21 different items on its menu, with prices ranging from $8 for a Beef Holler to $23.90 for a Full Monty.<\/p>\n
Wendy’s New Zealand was one of New Zealand’s longest Kiwi-owned burger business’ before it was sold in 2024. Photo \/ iStock<\/p>\n
Wendy\u2019s<\/p>\n
Starting at a similar time to Burger Wisconsin, Wendy\u2019s New Zealand was launched in Te Atat\u016b in 1988 by Danny and Dianne Lendich, who held the master licence for New Zealand.<\/p>\n
The Lendichs unintentionally fell into the business when they were opening petrol stations.<\/p>\n
The family was redeveloping land for a retail centre in Te Atat\u016b, of which Wendy\u2019s was geared up to become a tenant, when the deal with the party originally set to launch the brand in the market fell through, forcing them to step in.<\/p>\n
The Lendich family ended up operating the business for 35 years, opening stores across the country and forming partnerships with other brands, including the New Zealand Warriors NRL team.<\/p>\n
In 2022, the Lendich family announced it was seeking a new owner for the business, hiring an advisory firm to assist in the process.<\/p>\n
At the time Wendy\u2019s employed 450 staff in New Zealand and operated 12 stores in Auckland, eight in other parts of the North Island and two in the South Island.<\/p>\n
The business was acquired by the US-based Flynn Group in May 2024, the largest franchise operator in the world.<\/p>\n
Flynn Group chief executive Greg Flynn told the Herald in an exclusive interview<\/a> about his plans to grow the New Zealand business and expand its presence across the Tasman.<\/p>\n Today, Wendy\u2019s New Zealand has 20 locations across the country with about 500 employees.<\/p>\n Wendy\u2019s New Zealand has 34 burgers on its menu, with prices ranging from $4.90 for a Hamburger to $20.20 for a Big Bacon Classic Triple.<\/p>\n Downlow<\/p>\n One of the most recent players to enter the market, Downlow was first launched in 2023.<\/p>\n Founded by the owner of Mad Group, James Tucker, the American-inspired smash-burger business spun out of several Mad Mex outlets that closed over the course of 2023.<\/p>\n The business operates 20 locations under a franchise model, with another two currently non-trading.<\/p>\n Downlow\u2019s Kelston, Ponsonby and Kohimarama locations are in liquidation, with directors of each franchise location putting the liquidations down to a combination of internal and external pressures.<\/p>\n As owner of the franchise rights, not the stores themselves, Tucker is not responsible for the individual companies\u2019 liquidations.<\/p>\n Downlow has 14 burgers on its all-day menu, with prices starting at $11.50 for The Bacon, Egg and BBQ, to $19.90 for the O.G. Triple Smashed Cheeseburger.<\/p>\n Carl\u2019s Jr.<\/p>\n American chain Carl\u2019s Jr. entered New Zealand in 2011, with its first store opening in Auckland\u2019s Takanini.<\/p>\n The chain was brought to New Zealand by Barry Forsgren under his Forsgren NZ holding company, with part-ownership from All Black Michael Jones.<\/p>\n Forsgren and Jones were the original franchise partners for Carl\u2019s Jr. and had the rights to open eight such stores in Auckland.<\/p>\n However, in December 2011, after the opening of New Zealand\u2019s first store, Restaurant Brands New Zealand bought the rights to operate the American fast-food chain in this country from United States-based CKE Restaurants, which owns the brand.<\/p>\n At the time, Restaurant Brands said it had exclusive rights to develop the chain throughout New Zealand.<\/p>\n By August 2014, Forsgren NZ had expanded Carl\u2019s Jr. to seven Auckland outlets, including locations in Glen Innes, Takanini, Henderson and Avondale.<\/p>\n Then in November 2014, Restaurant Brands signed a conditional agreement to acquire the seven Carl\u2019s Jr. stores for a total consideration of $10.5m, making Restaurant Brands the sole operator in the New Zealand market.<\/p>\n Restaurant Brands, which had been trading on the NZX since 1997, was then taken private by the company\u2019s largest shareholder Finaccess, after buying out the remaining 25% of shareholders for $157m.<\/p>\n Today, Carl\u2019s Jr. has 17 stores across New Zealand and features 26 burgers on its menu, with prices ranging from $4.49 for a Hamburger to $14.49 for its Memphis BBQ Big Angus.<\/p>\n Better Burger<\/p>\n Last and certainly not least on this list is Better Burger, founded in 2014 by the team of five behind Britomart Hospitality Group: Nick McCaw, Rod Ballenden, Jeremy Priddy, Blair Wolfgram and Paul Gibbard.<\/p>\n The Kiwi chain has set itself apart from its competitors, with a focus on fresher ingredients and better environmental practices.<\/p>\n The latter is best exemplified by the brand\u2019s 100% commercially compostable packaging, alongside the introduction of recycling bins taking waste to a certified composting facility.<\/p>\n Better Burger opened its first store in Auckland\u2019s Britomart before expanding quickly to Vulcan Lane and beyond.<\/p>\n Today Better Burger has 12 locations across New Zealand, and features seven burgers on its menu, with prices ranging from $8.99 for a Salad Burger to $18.99 for a BBQ Bacon Double Cheeseburger.<\/p>\nTakeaway franchise Downlow Burgers, owned by James Tucker, has had multiple locations recently enter liquidation.<\/p>\n
Carl’s Jr. is owned by Restaurant Brands New Zealand, which was taken private last year in a deal worth $630 million. Photo \/ Michael Craig<\/p>\n
Better Burger opened its first store in Auckland\u2019s Britomart before expanding. Photo \/ Brett Phibbs.<\/p>\n