Wimpy nominated for major franchising award

Food chain Wimpy has been shortlisted in the Business Transformation category at the bfa HSBC British Franchise Awards, to be held at the Vox, Birmingham, on November 30.

Wimpy is a much-loved burger brand on the British high street. Its table service offering sets it apart from the competition, with all meals and drinks served with china crockery, glasses etc., and ‘proper’ knives and forks. Good quality, value-for-money food is freshly cooked and served to the table by its friendly staff.

Chris Woolfenden, General Manager, Wimpy UK, said: “Wimpy is thrilled to have been shortlisted by the bfa in the Business Transformation category.

“We are incredibly proud to be such a great British success story and we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our brilliant franchisees and their teams who do such a great job serving our customers.

“Given our amazing heritage it would have been easy to just continue what we have been doing, but that was never going to be enough for Wimpy. Our business transformation programme is about driving this much-loved brand forward and making it relevant to new generations of families. It’s about innovating, embracing new ways to reach customers through home delivery, social media and retail products, and making sure we have a fresh new look that takes Wimpy to the next level while retaining the love and traditions that keeps us at the heart of our local communities.

“Over the last few months, Wimpy has continued to grow, opening and/or refurbishing operations in Orpington, Slough, Borehamwood, Strood and Basingstoke, with further new locations due to launch soon.”

The awards evening is the flagship event in the franchising calendar and getting a nomination in itself is an achievement, proving the business works ethically and in the best interests of franchisees and staff, beating many other franchise systems who also entered.

Pip Wilkins QFP, CEO of the British Franchising Association, congratulated the food chain:

“Wimpy, in its heyday, had around 1,000 outlets in the UK. Now with 68, the focus is on a real community feel for the customer and providing excellent value. This clear focus has been one reason for Wimpy recording like-for-like sales growth of five per cent from the previous six months.”

Andrew Brattesani, Head of Franchising, HSBC, said:

“The community feel of the brand has been evident with the launch of a new website which is far more engaging and interactive. It’s an iconic brand, and it’s fantastic to see that this community is growing once again, with a real focus on being at the heart of charitable and local initiatives.”

Wimpy will go head-to-head against two other franchise systems in November.