Handmade Burger Co

Handmade Burger Co began in Birmingham in 2006, founded by Chris Sargeant. It entered the United Kingdom’s expanding casual-dining burger market with a restaurant format serving beef, chicken and vegetable burgers. The brand’s offer was broader than a single-product burger outlet, combining multiple burger categories with sit-down restaurant service. Expansion accelerated during the 2010s. In 2015, the company opened its largest reported restaurant at Grand Central in Birmingham after receiving a £600,000 cash injection. The opening took place when the chain had 24 restaurants. Before its first administration, the business had grown to 29 locations and employed close to 900 people, demonstrating the scale reached before its financial difficulties. On 6 July 2017, Handmade Burger Co entered administration. Nine of the 29 restaurants closed immediately. The chain nevertheless continued operating in a reduced form. The available reference material does not specify the complete restructuring arrangements or the identity of any acquiring entity, so those details cannot be stated reliably. The company entered administration for a second time on 23 January 2020. All 18 restaurants that remained at that point stopped trading immediately. The reported explanation centred on structural pressure in the British casual-dining sector: the market had become oversupplied, consumers were spending less, and some customers were choosing cheaper food options. The closure marked the end of the chain’s then-existing restaurant operation. In April 2021, the brand was relaunched by a former manager working with Howitt Hospitality Consultants. The Meadowhall site in Sheffield became the first branch to reopen, and the Lincoln branch followed on 7 September 2021. The sources establish the relaunch and these two reopening milestones but do not provide enough information to confirm the brand’s current ownership, estate size, financial performance or operating status. The chain is therefore best documented as a British burger brand with a history of expansion, two administrations and a post-collapse relaunch.

• 2021

  Brand relaunch begins

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  The brand was relaunched in April by a former manager and Howitt Hospitality Consultants. The Meadowhall branch in Sheffield reopened first.

• 2021

  Lincoln branch reopens

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  The Lincoln branch reopened on 7 September as part of the post-administration brand relaunch.

• 2020

  Second administration and cessation of trading

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  The company entered administration again on 23 January, and all 18 remaining restaurants ceased trading immediately.

• 2017

  First administration

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  Handmade Burger Co entered administration on 6 July. Nine of its 29 restaurants closed immediately.

• 2015

  Largest reported restaurant opens at Grand Central

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  The company opened its largest reported restaurant at Grand Central in Birmingham after a reported £600,000 cash injection. The chain had 24 restaurants at the time.

• 2006

  First restaurant opens in Birmingham

  [1]Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org

  Chris Sargeant opened the first Handmade Burger Co restaurant in Birmingham.

A British casual-dining burger chain positioned around restaurant-served, made-to-order beef, chicken and vegetable burgers.

• Burger

  Beef burgers

  Beef burgers were a core part of Handmade Burger Co’s restaurant menu and central to the chain’s identity as a British burger specialist. The available reference material confirms the category but does not provide reliable details about specific recipes, toppings, portion sizes or current availability.

• Burger

  Chicken burgers

  Chicken burgers formed one of the brand’s principal menu categories, broadening the offer beyond beef and helping the chain serve customers seeking poultry-based casual-dining meals. Detailed product specifications are not established by the available sources.

• Vegetarian burger

  Vegetable burgers

  Vegetable burgers were also offered, giving the chain a meat-free option within its burger-focused menu. The sources confirm the category but do not document the ingredients, recipe changes or current status of any particular vegetable burger.

• 2021

  Relaunch the Handmade Burger Co brandStrategy

  Background

  The brand had ceased trading after the 2020 administration but retained recognition and at least some former operating locations.

  Action taken

  A former manager and Howitt Hospitality Consultants relaunched the brand in April 2021, reopening Meadowhall in Sheffield first and Lincoln later that year.

  Aftermath

  The reopening of the Sheffield and Lincoln branches demonstrated a post-administration return, but the available sources do not establish the relaunch’s subsequent scale or current status.

  Source

• 2020

  Second administration ends the remaining restaurant operationOther

  Background

  The chain faced a saturated United Kingdom casual-dining market, lower consumer spending and competition from lower-priced options.

  Action taken

  The company entered administration for a second time on 23 January 2020.

  Aftermath

  All 18 remaining restaurants ceased trading immediately.

  Source

• 2017

  Enter administration and close nine restaurantsOther

  Background

  The company was operating 29 restaurants and employing nearly 900 people shortly before entering administration.

  Action taken

  Handmade Burger Co entered administration on 6 July 2017, with nine restaurants closing immediately.

  Aftermath

  The brand continued in a reduced form after the immediate closures, although the available source does not specify the full restructuring or ownership arrangements.

  Source

• 2015

  Expand through a large Birmingham flagship siteStrategy

  Background

  The chain was expanding its restaurant estate and had reached 24 restaurants by the time of the 2015 Grand Central opening.

  Action taken

  Handmade Burger Co opened its largest reported restaurant at Grand Central in Birmingham, supported by a reported £600,000 cash injection.

  Aftermath

  The expansion was followed by continued operation at a larger scale, but the company later entered administration in 2017 and again in 2020.

  Cash injection. £600,000 (2015)

  Source

1. 1Handmade Burger Coen.wikipedia.org