Lemon Pepper Holdings, the master franchisee of Wingstop in the UK and Republic of Ireland (UKI), the restaurant brand that doesn’t play when it comes to flavour, today announces results for the period ended 28 December 2025. It reports record revenues and operating profit, driven by disciplined expansion, operational excellence and a relentless focus on guest experience that keeps fans coming back for more.
These results come as Wingstop UKI pushes ahead with its growth plans, entering new markets, opening new restaurants, and continuing to invest in its people and culture.
New market entry
Since launching in 2018, Wingstop UKI has continued to open new restaurants at pace, recently opening a 147 seat site at Manchester Arndale. The brand recently made its debut in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, opening four sites to an exceptional customer response and strong early trading. Building on this momentum, the Group has now signed a development agreement to expand into Poland. Poland represents an exciting growth market, with a large, dynamic consumer base, a rapidly developing QSR sector and strong demand for bold, high quality food experiences. As one of Central Europe’s fastest growing economies, it offers an excellent opportunity to introduce Wingstop’s flavour led proposition to a new generation of fans.
100 restaurant milestone
This month, Wingstop UKI will mark a major milestone with its 100th UK restaurant opening in Inverness – the brand’s furthest north location yet. This achievement reflects the consistency of execution behind Wingstop UKI’s expansion and the strength of customer demand. From bold flavours and high quality chicken to a vibrant restaurant atmosphere, industry leading service and genuine community connection, Wingstop UKI offers something distinctly different in the QSR market, a defining factor behind its continued success.
Continued growth opportunity
With strong performance across the UK and Ireland, successful new openings and significant white space for expansion, Wingstop UKI sees considerable opportunity ahead. Trading has continued to be encouraging for the current financial year, and focus remains on long term sustainable growth over short term milestones. Wingstop UKI plans to open a total of up to 30 sites this year in locations across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Investing in people and culture
Alongside its expansion, Wingstop UKI is committed to redefining what it means to build a career in hospitality. Recognised in The Sunday Times’ Best Places to Work awards for three consecutive years, the brand’s initiatives – including its Flavour Foundry, Wingstop University and Step Up programme – help fast track crew into leadership roles. Wingstop UKI also recently strengthened its leadership team with the appointment of Emily Lawrence as Head of People & Talent Acquisition. Overall happiness score exceeds 80%, 90-day retention consistently remains at 90%, and the business is set to reach its 1000th Step Up programme sign off this summer.
Chris Sherriff, CEO of Wingstop UKI said: “To have achieved record results despite the well-reported headwinds facing the broader hospitality sector is a fantastic achievement – one made possible only by the hard work of our team and the loyalty of our fans. I want to take this opportunity to thank them both for their continued dedication and unwavering support.”
“Reaching our 100th site in the UK is an incredible milestone, but more importantly, it reflects our commitment to opening exceptional restaurants in the right locations, maintaining operational excellence at scale, and investing in the people and culture that underpin our business. Customers increasingly seek out brands that offer a memorable experience, differentiated products and genuine value. This is why our focus remains on giving our loyal fans reasons to keep coming back, whether that’s through menu innovation – like our recently launched Big Ranch, Cajun Ranch and BBQ Ranch – responding to customer feedback, or continually enhancing the restaurant experience. As we grow across the UK and Ireland, and expand into new international markets such as Poland, we’ll build on our position as one of the most distinctive and most-loved brands in the category.”
