When Burger King was developing its latest prototype, known as Sizzle, the company came to a realization: Its ability to get ideas from concept to restaurant took longer than it did for the chain’s competitors, because it lacked a place to test them.
And so late last year the company opened its Royal Innovation Center to give the company a place to test those ideas.
“We want to be the No. 1 burger brand in the U.S.,” Eduardo Serafim, VP of development and franchising for Burger King North America, said in an interview. “You need to have something like this that allows you to be more nimble and, honestly, more effective, to test and innovate and to bring franchisees on the journey.”
The 40,000-square-foot space features a test kitchen that can house two full kitchen layouts, “and you can play with that all day,” Serafim said. It also features a technology lab, where the company can test technology such as AI. The facility also includes a full model of Burger King’s Sizzle prototype.
Burger King's innovation center features a full prototype.
That prototype includes a drive-thru. “You have a full Sizzle, a ground-up Sizzle,” Serafim said. “You not only have one, you have two windows.”
The innovation center is important for Burger King, which believes its long-term future rests in a combination of better operations and remodeled restaurants. The chain says it can get 85% of its nearly 7,000 U.S. restaurants remodeled by 2028. It is also raising operations standards and tying various incentives to franchisees’ scores on those standards.
Innovation facilities such as that one are commonplace throughout the industry and have become more important as brands add new ordering channels and technologies that have put pressure on restaurant operators.
The facility enables Burger King to bring teams together to test out ideas, including employees, vendors and franchisees.
For instance, Burger King is adding kiosks to its restaurants. The center enables the company to determine the best place to put them. “That was one thing we tested,” Serafim said. “We had a front counter we were able to play with and test different angles, different layouts for the POS, to make sure that it was seamless for the guest.”
The facility includes a double drive-thru.
Serafim's team, the “development and architect” team, works with the operations team to ensure that the experience for customers and workers is good.
The company doesn’t test in front of customers. It instead tests configuration and customers’ use of the restaurant. It will also bring in franchisees who can test ideas themselves, providing their insight.
The facility will house cross-functional teams that help test ideas, including designers and operations employees.
Most important, facilities like this can help franchisees avoid costly mistakes that can be found during testing. That saves money and time.
“Rolling out to some franchisee and learning the expensive way, that’s not optimal,” Serafim said. “And it takes a long time. If we wanted to do a kiosk launch on any restaurants, you need permits, it takes time. Then it becomes an expensive mistake if it’s not optimal.
“Franchisees love it, because they’re part of the solution, and whenever it comes to their restaurants, it’s way more effective.”
The center houses cross-functional teams that work on different areas.
UPDATE: This story was updated to correct Eduardo Serafim's name.
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