As BurgerFuel celebrates 25 years of serving up New Zealand’s original gourmet burgers, it seems only right to share the journey of one of BurgerFuel’s original franchisees, Matt. It was the year of the Y2K glitch (2000), when Matt, along with James became co-owners of the first franchised store in Takapuna. This year they celebrate their 20th anniversary as BurgerFuel franchisees. They deserve a bloody medal.
The pair met while working in a restaurant chain in Upper Hutt and subsequently opened their own stores in Belmont and Birkenhead. The chain was sold and they set their sights on a new BurgerFuel Takapuna site. In 2001, they opened BurgerFuel Mt Eden and were eventually ready to make a go of things as sole operators. With a knowledge that only comes from being there from the very beginning, the two created the foundation of what is, today, a solid network of experienced and passionate franchisees. Matt now owns BurgerFuel’s Mt Eden and Botany, and hasn’t looked back since.
‘Fun, Fast & Loud’ personifies the in-store experience in a BurgerFuel store and store owners have always been encouraged to be open minded when it comes to employing new staff. Diversity and uniqueness are welcomed and embraced, something Matt adopted in his recruitment process from the get go, “We’ve never been afraid to hire people that some employers would consider too ‘out there’”.
As part of that in-store experience, fostering a good culture in his stores is paramount and evident by the activities they partake in together outside of work. Matt remains in close contact with a lot of past employees, many of whom have gone on to very successful careers, a testament to his holistic approach to leadership. “There’s always been a strong team bond in my stores, with many long-term friendships forged that continue beyond BF (even a few married couples that met in-store). While the work can be hard, the group is usually having a good time. And our parties are epic”.
His local haunt is Ralphs (the evolution of the ‘vinyl café’), in Mt Eden. Neighbours from back in the days when the BurgerFuel Mt Eden store was situated on Dominion Rd. The owner and Matt became great mates and share lots of crazy memories - the guy even has scars from one of the many BurgerFuel parties (prompting NDA requirements for all parties from that night onwards). According to Matt, they sell beer and make a decent burger, so worth checking out next time you’re in the hood.
If you get the pleasure to meet our OG store owner, you’re in for a treat, with his philosophical views on the world and his cheeky sense of humour, you’ll find yourself lost in conversation for hours. We’ll be inviting ourselves over for one of those coffees soon.
