Restaurant Brands Intl — Business Overview

What does Restaurant Brands International do?

Restaurant Brands International (RBI) is one of the world's largest fast food (quick service restaurant, or QSR) companies, owning and franchising four well-known brands across more than 120 countries. As of December 31, 2025, RBI had over 33,000 restaurants globally generating nearly $47 billion in annual system-wide sales (the total sales across all restaurants, whether owned by RBI or its franchisees). More than 95% of those restaurants are operated by independent franchisees (business owners who pay to operate under RBI's brand names), not by RBI directly.

The four brands, each targeting a slightly different menu niche, are:

How does Restaurant Brands International make money?

RBI's primary revenue comes from franchising — it earns royalties, fees, and rent from the independent operators who run its restaurants, rather than from selling food directly. Royalties for standard restaurants typically range from 3.0% to 6.0% of gross sales. Franchisees also pay advertising fund contributions of 2.0% to 5.0% of gross sales, and RBI leases roughly 4,700 properties to franchisees, collecting rent equal to roughly 8.5% to 10.0% of monthly gross sales.

Tim Hortons is a partial exception to the pure-franchise model, as RBI runs a significant supply chain operation for that brand. RBI owns coffee roasting facilities, a fondant and fills manufacturing plant, nine distribution centers in Canada (five owned by RBI), and a fleet of trucks. TH franchisees buy many of their supplies directly from RBI, adding a product sales revenue stream on top of royalties for that brand.

RBI also owns a small number of Company restaurants directly, most of which came from its May 2024 acquisition of Carrols Restaurant Group (the largest Burger King franchisee in the U.S.). These company-owned restaurants employ roughly 48,900 people. RBI intends to sell most of these restaurants back to franchisees (a process called refranchising) over the coming years, returning to its primarily asset-light model.

What market does Restaurant Brands International operate in?

RBI competes in the global quick service restaurant (QSR) industry, which serves consumers who want fast, affordable meals. The QSR segment competes not just against other burger and chicken chains, but also against fast casual restaurants (like Chipotle), convenience stores, grocery stores, and food delivery aggregators like DoorDash or Uber Eats. The filing notes that delivery platforms give consumers easy access to a wide range of alternatives, intensifying competition particularly in urban areas.

The QSR market is large and global, but also mature and highly competitive in North America. Growth opportunities are increasingly coming from international markets, where rising middle-class populations and urbanization are expanding demand for branded fast food. RBI's brands span 126 countries for Burger King alone, reflecting how broadly the QSR concept has spread. The filing also highlights digital ordering, loyalty programs, kiosks, and AI-enhanced drive-thru experiences as growing areas that are reshaping how customers interact with fast food brands.

Who are Restaurant Brands International's main competitors?

The QSR industry is dominated by a handful of massive global chains, but also includes countless regional and local operators. RBI's brands face competition from McDonald's (the world's largest burger chain, with Burger King positioned as number two), Starbucks and Dunkin' (competing with Tim Hortons in coffee), Chick-fil-A and KFC (competing with Popeyes in chicken), and chains like Subway and Jimmy John's (competing with Firehouse Subs in sandwiches). The filing notes there are few barriers to entry, meaning new competitors can appear and scale quickly.

RBI's claimed competitive advantages center on brand heritage, global scale, and a diversified portfolio. The four brands cover different meal occasions and times of day (called daypart mixes) — coffee and breakfast at Tim Hortons, burgers and lunch/dinner at Burger King, chicken at Popeyes, and subs at Firehouse Subs — which reduces reliance on any single category. RBI also argues that sharing best practices, technology, and supply chain expertise across brands gives franchisees advantages a standalone operator would not have.

Where does Restaurant Brands International operate?

RBI has a genuinely global footprint, with roughly half its restaurants outside the U.S. and Canada. Of the 33,041 total restaurants, 16,638 are in the U.S. and Canada, and 16,403 are international. Burger King is by far the most internationally spread brand, operating in 126 countries. Tim Hortons is heavily concentrated in Canada (its home market), with limited but growing international presence across 21 countries. Popeyes operates in 51 countries, and Firehouse Subs is still mostly a North American brand (9 countries).

Internationally, RBI typically operates through master franchise agreements, granting a local partner the right to sub-franchise and develop an entire country or region. This keeps RBI's direct operational and capital exposure limited abroad. The company holds equity stakes in some large master franchisees and participates in select joint ventures. A notable recent example: RBI sold approximately 83% of its Burger King China operations to a private equity fund (CPE) in January 2026, retaining only a 17% stake, reflecting a preference for the asset-light franchise model even in large markets.

RBI's approximately 53,500 direct employees are split across the U.S. (33,700), internationally (17,700), and Canada (2,100), with the large majority working in the company-owned restaurants it acquired through the Carrols deal and plans to eventually refranchise.