By Angela Green, Content Executive, H&C News: GDK opens 100th restaurant with 78 more on the way before year end.
German Doner Kebab pioneers of gourmet kebabs in the UK has reached a milestone, its 100th UK restaurant opened this week, making the brand the UK’s fastest-growing restaurant chain.
The landmark 100th site opened for customers yesterday in London’s Covent Garden on St Martins Lane.
To mark the 100th opening, GDK hosted a weekend of launch activity to celebrate its significant milestone.
Over the last few years, GDK has cemented itself as a culturally forward-thinking brand, revolutionizing the kebab in the UK.
The 100th restaurant opening sees German Doner Kebab unveil plans to open 78 more new restaurants in the UK during 2022, building significantly on the 39 opened during 2021.
Now employing over 3,500 people in its restaurants throughout the country, the brand boasts a development pipeline of 350 franchise units over the next seven years and has delivered a significant rise in UK total sales in 2021, up 75 per cent from the previous 12 months.
Based in Glasgow, Scotland, the brand has grown at great pace in the UK, Sweden and Middle East and now rapidly expanding in the USA, Canada, Saudi Arabia and across other key locations in Europe.
Imran Sayeed, GDK CEO, said: “Opening our 100th UK restaurant is a landmark moment in the German Doner Kebab story but we are not stopping there.
“Our goal for 2022 is to almost double our UK portfolio and continue our mission to bring the GDK experience to more cities and towns throughout the UK.
“We are a brand that listens to the needs of our customers and have been responding to the huge demand for our game-changing kebabs throughout the UK.
“We are now looking forward to forging ahead with our growth strategy and developing GDK as the fast-casual brand of the future, bringing a fresh and exciting alternative to the Gen Z and Millennial audience.”
German Doner Kebab also wants to press ahead with international growth in 2022.
Plans are in place to open 11 new restaurants in North America and German Doner Kebab is also set to open its first restaurant in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2022. The Ajlan Bin Ajlan Group has been signed-up as the master-franchisee in Saudi Arabia, with a development agreement of 100 restaurants over the next five years.
Further growth is also set to be announced for Ireland and Spain in Europe.
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