Tim Hortons plans ambitious roll-out of drive-thru franchise format

Canadian quick service restaurant brand pledges to have restaurants in every major UK town and city by 2022

Tim Hortons has unveiled plans to grow its drive-thru business model rapidly over the next few years, with a continuous roll-out of sites across the UK, starting with its first site in ‘the south’, located in Milton Keynes.

With the brand having completed testing of a number of franchise formats and a proven track record of successful launches in Glasgow, Belfast, Manchester and the Midlands, it’s pledged to have Tim Hortons drive-thru restaurants in every major city and town by 2022.

Tim Hortons was established in Canada in 1964. Today it has around 4,700 restaurants in Canada, the US and around the world. In opened its first UK restaurant in Glasgow in 2017.

The company, which owns 23 venues, including seven drive-thru sites, in the UK, sells premium coffee, hot and cold speciality drinks, speciality teas and fruit smoothies, fresh baked goods, grilled panini and classic sandwiches, wraps and soups.

Kevin Hydes, chief commercial officer of Tim Hortons UK & Ireland, says: “Despite challenging times for the sector, our drive-thru and flagship locations have delivered exceptional performance and our model is proving to be well attuned to the evolving needs of customers at this time.

“The recent pandemic has driven a spike in demand for our drive-thru restaurants and as a key part of our accelerated growth strategy we will be actively looking for leasehold and freehold opportunities across the UK and Ireland.

“Having completed our testing of a number of formats, we feel this is a real opportunity for us to offer the best of QSR and become a leader in the marketplace.

“We have a dedicated acquisition and construction team behind us supporting our ambitious growth plan and our arrival in the south is just the start of our planned expansion throughout the UK, with many more exciting openings in the pipeline for 2021 and beyond.”