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From fast-casual favourites like Wingstop and Popeyes to premium newcomers like Black Tap, American brands are making waves on UK soil. But true success requires more than a familiar logo and fanfare – it demands cultural fluency, architectural empathy and a deep understanding of local behaviour. Keith Anderson, CEO at Harrison, explores how thoughtful translation (not replication) is helping US brands to feel right at home in Great Britain.

The UK high street has witnessed remarkable success stories of American brands in recent years. The likes of Wingstop, Popeyes and Dave's Hot Chicken have achieved explosive growth in a relatively brief time. Wingstop entered the UK market in 2018 and now boasts around 57 locations, whilst Popeyes launched its first UK restaurant in November 2021 and has rapidly expanded to over 65 sites. Dave's Hot Chicken, the viral Nashville hot chicken brand, successfully made the leap from the US to UK shores at the end of 2024, capitalising on social media momentum to drive demand in previously untapped markets.

This surge of American brands raises important questions: what drives this extraordinary success, and how can other businesses replicate these achievements when expanding into new markets?

Transportation vs translation

The UK has long maintained a cultural fascination with American brands, driven by decades of exposure to US movies, television and music. All of this creates a sense of aspirational familiarity, which has likely paved the way for the cultural exchange. More recently, social media has become a 'discovery' platform where captivating and viral visual concepts create an opportunity for hospitality businesses to begin building a presence and driving demand in previously untapped markets.

However, whilst it could be tempting to simply 'copy and paste' a format from one country to another, the brands that truly succeed in cross-country exchanges are those that understand the difference between transplantation and translation, maintaining their core brand identity whilst thoughtfully adapting to British consumer preferences and cultural contexts.

Take Wingstop, for example. In the US, Wingstop restaurants use a similar methodology to high-energy retail spaces to draw people in. As the brand continues to grow (they currently have circa. 2,000 restaurants worldwide), like many other US brands, to build at scale in a franchise market, they created a design manual to ensure the essence Wingstop can be maintained, whilst building in adaptations for local market nuances.

In the UK specifically, the brand’s bold flavour selection and customisable menu resonates well with their target audience, Gen Zs and younger millennials, as well as working well in a multicultural environment such as London. Their American-style branding is bright and bold, captivating attention, but it does not feel forced or over Americanised – leading instead into cultural touchpoints through music, streetwear and partnerships to add authentic urban credibility.

By taking the time to understand the new market, which means audience, yes, but also the competitor and wider dining landscape, the brand has seen incredible success in the UK. They didn’t just localise; Wingstop ensured it was culturally relevant.

Authentic connections in authentic locations

A particular consideration when bringing a brand to the UK is finding creative ways to harmonise with the local architecture and environment. Often, restaurants are housed in existing buildings rather than purpose-built units.

Black Tap’s recently opened flagship London restaurant is a perfect example, finding its home in a Grade II Listed building. This means there are protected elements which had to be preserved, from sculptures flanking the central windows to ornate mirrors and ceiling mouldings. All adding layers of design and architectural considerations, which were new for a US-based client used to less red tape.

Rather than concealing these heritage features, they were embraced and creatively embellished. Purposeful contrasts with Black Tap's modern aesthetic celebrated the building's heritage whilst maintaining Black Tap's distinctive identity. For example, a custom steel frame was engineered to form the bar, arching around mouldings in the wall to illuminate the protected elements, while glass panels allow for Black Tap’s signature graffiti artwork to be layered over them.

For us, it was all about finding ways to localise design features and strategically collide two different cultures. In this instance, having fun with the building's history has allowed for a uniquely British experience with authentic American roots, merging SoHo New York with Soho London. The heart of the brand and its values shine through, but with locally relevant and culturally appropriate expressions.

As American brands continue to succeed in the UK, we're likely to also see British brands making the reverse journey, bringing uniquely British concepts to American consumers hungry for authentic international experiences.

Successful brand adaptation requires flexibility in personality to resonate with specific demographics. For example, Gordon Ramsay plays into his Britishness and global persona as the crux of his brand’s personality across his restaurant portfolio. This is translated into key design features, which can be found in his restaurants. For example, in Ramsay’s Kitchen, Union Jack elements are subtle to provoke conversation by creating winks and nods towards its British origins.

It is a prime example of a brand succeeding by taking the time to understand the difference between replication and thoughtful cultural adaptation, not simply replicating their home market success but thoughtfully adapting to new cultural contexts. Gordon Ramsay's success demonstrates how building authentic connections with audiences in different markets, understanding their unique expectations and cultural contexts, creates genuine international appeal that goes beyond simple brand recognition.

It's all in the marketing

Regardless of the demand or hype created ahead of transporting a brand into a new market, if operators only take one piece of advice, it is: don't assume your new audience understands your brand. The work needs to be put into communicating brand values, what they represent, and why people should engage with them – making sure there are multiple and consistent touchpoints for messaging to resonate.

The path to success is paved with brands that have failed when they assume without taking the time to review everything from customer journey to service delivery. Something as seemingly simple as where beer taps are placed on a bar – in the UK, these are found at the front of the bar, in the US, typically at the back – can jar with a new audience if not correctly considered.  

For example, Chipotle has recently pivoted to ensure its core brand values shine through in every touchpoint of the customer journey in the UK. A British audience might presume that US QSR means fried, unhealthy options – convenience over freshness. However, Chipotle emanates fresh eating and real food. When you eat at Chipotle, everything is prepared there and then, with no artificial colours, no microwaves and no freezers in sight.

For Chipotle, a key part of their journey was taking a step back to ensure these values and the essence of what makes Chipotle unique were successfully communicated to the British audience, ultimately leading to a change of direction. For example, we were able to take them on a new design path, updating and evolving the look and feel of the restaurant design to develop environments which better resonated and translated these values, celebrating their sustainable messaging and teaching customers how to navigate their brand properly, all while never assuming market familiarity.

Successful international brand expansion requires specialised expertise, experience in translating brand experiences across markets whilst preserving the soul of a brand, and deep-rooted in-market knowledge. It is a nuanced approach requiring careful consideration of each project's unique context, ensuring authenticity is maintained whilst finding resonance in new markets.

Success demands thoughtful adaptation to new cultural contexts rather than simply replicating home market approaches, honouring origins whilst embracing local context, maintaining consistent quality whilst adapting to local preferences, and leveraging global recognition whilst creating location-specific connections.

The brands that will thrive in our increasingly connected world are those that can tell a compelling story whilst making each customer feel that their local experience is uniquely tailored to them and for them. It's about understanding not just cultural differences, but competitive landscapes, guest expectations and the subtle art of making global brands feel authentically local.