TORONTO, Jan. 30, 2023 /CNW/ - As one of Canada's fastest-growing restaurant companies, Redberry Restaurants ("Redberry"), a multi-brand Quick-Service Restaurant (QSR) Franchisee, capped off an unprecedented year of growth, solidly positioning them for years of upcoming expansion.

While Redberry experienced significant growth in 2022, the year was primarily about positioning the company for an extended period of exciting expansion. With almost 400 new Burger King and Taco Bell locations set to open over the next eight years, Redberry is poised to be Canada's largest and fastest-growing restaurant Franchisee. Redberry added more than 3,000 people to its team in 2022 to support this tremendous growth. There were also close to 400 internal promotions of existing team members.  5,000 team members will be hired in 2023 to fuel the company's growth.

The company began the new year by relocating its corporate headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario, as part of its growth strategy. As the Redberry Restaurant Support Team continues to grow, the company expanded the office space and modernized the work environment.

In 2022, Redberry's Canadian QSR footprint grew significantly. A total of 14 new restaurants were added to the company's portfolio, and 11 locations were remodelled, including Canada's first historic Burger King restaurant in Windsor, Ontario. Furthermore, the company secured Area Development Agreements for future growth, which was Redberry's crowning achievement.

Over the next six years, Redberry will build more than 150 new restaurants and remodel nearly 65 more across Canada under an extraordinary agreement with Burger King Canada. As part of the development agreement, 23 new locations will open in 2023.

Moreover, Redberry signed an unprecedented expansion plan to build 200 Taco Bell locations across Canada within eight years, doubling the brand's current Canadian footprint. Redberry will expand the Taco Bell brand throughout British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario. Redberry's first new-build Taco Bell opened in London, Ontario, in January 2023, demonstrating the company's ability to deliver on expansion goals.

In 2023, Redberry also plans to open three additional Pizza Hut locations in Alberta.

Recent success can be attributed to Redberry's outstanding team and corporate culture.

"To set the company up for continued and rapid growth, we recognized the need to define what makes Redberry so special," says Ken Otto, CEO of Redberry Restaurants. The company carefully crafted their purpose, mission and vision in a succinct brand book that has become the North Star for how they interact daily with customers and co-workers. It gives each team member a clear understanding of why they show up each and every day. Otto continues, "We commit to lead with kindness and celebrate each other's uniqueness as we grow into THE franchisee company that coveted brands trust to run their Canadian operations."

The evolution of the company's core values defined the rebranding of its corporate culture. "At Redberry, we are Bursting with P.R.I.D.E.," says Kiran Benet, VP of Human Resources at Redberry Restaurants. "Each team member embodies the values of Partnership, Respect, Integrity, Diversity and Empowerment. The key to winning is teamwork. By clarifying our core values, we have a shared understanding and commitment to constantly seek ways to improve and learn from one another to grow and become stronger together."

The company celebrates its employees and every day wins regularly. Annually, the organization recognizes outstanding team performance and contribution through their annual Operational Excellence Awards. Team members are also given the opportunity to nominate one another for an annual Executive Leadership Award, which recognizes leadership skills across the organization on every level.

A commitment to corporate culture will continue to be a priority for Redberry in 2023. Among other investments, a real-time internal communication platform linking the entire organization, from the frontline to the Executive Office, has been launched. The Human Resources and Marketing teams will be expanded in 2023, and the Redberry Academy, a new training initiative, will be available to ensure our team members continue to have opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge as a member of the Redberry team.

Throughout 2022, Redberry received various industry awards for its achievements. Franchise Times ranked them in the Top 50 Franchisee Operators in North America, making them the only Canadian company to crack the top 50. In addition, Foodservice and Hospitality named them one of the Top 20 Foodservice Chains.

YUM! Pizza Hut recognized Redberry's operational excellence with two prestigious awards. The Nikola Tesla Tech Award 2022 was presented to Redberry for its support and rollout of new technology pilots. Redberry was also recognized with the Pizza Hut Growth Mindset Award 2022 for its willingness to lead strategic initiatives and participate in testing designed to build the brand and enhance customer experience.

With Redberry's rapid expansion, their inspiring growth mindset, and ongoing training and support of team members and communities, they are positioned to garner more attention and awards in 2023.  

Redberry is proud to support local activities in the communities in which it operates. As a steadfast supporter of the Burger King Foundation, the company supports both its educational scholarship and its family emergency fund program. As a result of in-store initiatives, as well as corporate donations, Redberry donated almost half a million dollars to these outstanding causes in 2022.

"Redberry was honoured to award 74 scholarships to team members as well as to students from the general community. The scholarships helped students achieve their educational goals and dreams," says Sharron Fry, Director of Marketing, Redberry Canada. "Making a positive impact on our team members, customers and communities is so rewarding."

Redberry's commitment to the scholarship program is stronger than ever in 2023, with a targeted 25% increase in donations and scholarship awards.

Founded in 2005, Redberry is one of Canada's largest restaurant operators, with a deep understanding of how to connect with communities across the country. Redberry's accelerated growth trajectory has been made possible by a unique business acumen that creates an environment where our partners, brands and team members can achieve the best versions of themselves. Redberry has 170-plus restaurants across Canada, operating under the BURGER KING^®, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, with signed agreements for almost 400 additional restaurants over the next several years. Redberry is proud to have been awarded "Restaurant Top 200: The Nation's Largest and Most Successful Franchisees" by Franchise Times for the last two years and Burger King's Franchisee of the Year for North America in 2021. We truly are architects of a different kind of restaurant company. For more information, visit www.redberry.ca

In 2019, City Capital Ventures ("CCV") acquired the Toronto-based Redberry Group. CCV invests on behalf of an exclusive network of family offices and private market investors, seeking businesses at "inflection points" where it perceives an outsized opportunity for accelerated business growth, fuelled by CCV's capital support.

SOURCE Redberry Restaurants

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