Local KFC Franchisee wins international award

Brandstories|Published 1 year ago

Alex Gunning, managing director of Gunret Foods accepts the award on stage from Rob Swain, chief global operations officer for KFC International, along with the rest of the Global KFC team.

Gunret Foods - the Pretoria based KFC franchisee, is celebrating their win at this year’s KFC International Franchise Convention which was held in Singapore in February 2023. The South African Franchisee won the Award for Distinctive and Delightful Customer Experience 2023, coming out tops against all participating KFC franchise stores across 145 countries.

“This is indeed an incredible achievement to be recognised as the best in the world according to international standards,” said Alex Gunning, managing director of Gunret Foods. “We are exceptionally proud of this achievement and it’s just another testament that our customers can be assured that when visiting any Gunret owned KFC franchise in South Africa, it will be a great experience.”

Gunret Foods owns and operates 43 KFC outlets in South Africa, with the majority based in Gauteng - followed by additional outlets in Rustenburg (8) and Cape Town (8). The first outlet was acquired in 1985, and has since grown from strength to strength.

The group is also on an expansion drive with a number of new stores planned and have in October 2022, opened KFC Hebron Mall - with another new store in Rustenburg, in Phokeng scheduled for March 2023.

Gunret Foods has also won Top Franchise in South Africa multiple times, one of the few in the country to do so.

Gunret Foods senior team: James Robinson, HR manager; Paul Roos, chief operations officer; Shaun Middleton, operations manager.

In fact, the group is no stranger to the international arena – in 2018 Gunret was one of nine franchisees in the world nominated to represent Africa in 2018, as Operator of the Year at the KFC International Franchise Awards in Orlando, United States, out of 23 000 restaurants in the world.

Some of the recent outstanding achievements include:

2023 Customer Experience International Award
2022 Delivery Restaurant of the Year
2021 Operator of the Year Award
2021 Digital Leader Award
2020 Representing Africa at the International Franchise Convention
2019 Franchise of the Year winner
2019 People Grower of the Year winner
2019 Culture Champion in Training

With a strong focus on people internally and externally – Gunret always delivers on its promise of customer service, operational excellence, compliance, training, people growth, development, and a commitment to be the best.

The group currently employs over 1 300 staff members and has been able to continue trading well through turbulent economic times over the years.

In addition, the franchise feels that it has a responsibility to give back to the community. The group currently has three charities it supports directly through the KFC Add Hope programme. Gunret Foods is also involved in the KFC Mini Cricket programme at a community level to get children active and introduce them to the game of cricket.

“Being the best is a team effort, we win together, and we celebrate achievements as a team. This only happens when every person in the organisation works towards excellence. Gunret Foods always strives for the highest standards which results in a high level of customer service and community engagement,” concludes Chief Operations Officer, Paul Roos.