- Founded in 2011, Honest Burgers has grown into one of the UK’s most respected premium burger brands, with 39 sites across the country;
- Its vertically integrated “farm-to-fork” sourcing, everything homemade model, and value-led price point, have enabled it to build a loyal customer following;
- It has recently opened its first “Smash + Grab” concept, a tech-enabled quick service restaurant (QSR) format in Liverpool Street, designed for high-speed, high-quality service;
- With the finance from OakNorth, it is looking to accelerate its expansion of this concept.
London, Monday 21 July, 2025: OakNorth, the leading digital bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs, has provided a senior debt package to support Honest Burgers as it enters an exciting new phase of growth.
Founded in 2011, Honest Burgers has grown into one of the UK’s most respected premium burger brands, with 39 sites across the country and a loyal customer base built on its vertically integrated “farm-to-fork” sourcing, everything homemade model, and value-led price point. The business has delivered strong like-for-like growth across its Restaurant estate and continues to offer menu innovation. The company has also recently launched its new “Smash + Grab” concept, a tech-enabled quick service restaurant (QSR) format designed for high-speed, high-quality service.
It is backed by Active Partners, a consumer-focused investment firm whose previous investments include Leon and Sticks n Sushi – both of which are former and existing OakNorth customers respectively. Since 2015, Active has supported Honest Burger’s growth from nine sites to the 39 it has today.
Stuart Blair, Debt Finance Director at OakNorth, commented: ”Honest Burgers is a standout brand in the UK casual dining space, combining strong values with operational excellence and a loyal customer following. We’ve been impressed by the team’s disciplined approach to growth, their consistent performance post-Covid, and their innovative thinking – from regenerative beef sourcing to launching a quick service restaurant (QSR) and plans for a franchising model. We’re proud to support them and their long-term partner Active Partners as they scale to the next level.”
Matt Brandon, CEO of Honest Burgers, added: “With this funding from OakNorth, we’re unlocking a significant phase of growth – not only expanding our footprint, but also continuing to invest in our people, technology, and franchising model. OakNorth has been a pragmatic and thoughtful partner throughout this process, and their confidence in our strategy is a strong endorsement of the team’s vision.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
About OakNorth
Launched in September 2015 and founded by entrepreneurs, OakNorth is a digital bank focused on serving and empowering the lower mid-market (businesses with £1m-£100m in turnover), that are seeking to scale but are routinely underserved or overlooked by traditional banks.
To date, it has provided $17bn to these businesses across a wide range of sectors, achieving performance metrics that place it amongst the top 1% of commercial banks globally. Its loans have directly contributed to the creation of 56,000 jobs, and over 34,000 new homes across the UK and the US – the majority of which are affordable and social housing.
It is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Visit www.oaknorth.co.uk for more information.
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About Honest Burgers
Co-founded by friends Tom Barton and Philip Eeles in Brighton in 2009, Honest Burgers started out cooking great British burgers in a field at a local food festival. The following year Tom and Phil opened a tiny restaurant in Brixton Market (which is still there today), making everything from scratch and cycling eight miles every day to pick up the best beef available.
Honest Burgers launched its own butchery in 2017, which enabled Honest to make its own patties rather than buying them in. Honest Burgers is the only burger company in the UK to do this, chopping (rather than mincing) its beef so it holds the flavour and eat more like a steak. Next to the Honest Burgers butchery is the Honest Kitchen, where all sauces, relishes, pickles, drinks and chips are made entirely from scratch every day.
Honest Burgers has 39 restaurants in England and Wales, including London, Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Liverpool, Manchester, Reading and Windsor.
Media contact – [email protected]