Kevin Styles, the former CEO of Jamie Oliver Group, has been appointed as the new chief executive officer of Honest Burgers.
Before joining Honest Burgers, Styles served as CEO of the Jamie Oliver Group from 2022, where he led the development of the company’s new restaurant concept and cooking school.
Styles steps into the role previously held by Thomas Kelly, who transitioned to chair in September 2024. During the interim period, Matt Brandon covered the position and will now return to his role as chief financial officer.
Kelly said: “We’re really excited to welcome Kevin to the Honest family. His extensive experience and forward-thinking vision make him the perfect leader to guide us into our next phase and we look forward to seeing the impact he will have on our brand.”
Styles added: “This brand has a unique opportunity to really disrupt a sector that is evolving quickly.
“The quality of the offer, highly competitive value, a very strong and distinctive brand all combined with amazing restaurant teams provide an incredible platform for sustainable growth.”
The company currently operates 39 locations across the UK and is on track to surpass £60m in turnover this year, driven by a 10% increase in like-for-like sales and a 50% rise in EBITDA.
The launch of its grab-and-go smashburger concept, Smash + Grab, in December is a key part of Honest Burgers’ plan to quadruple in size by 2030.
The Smash + Grab concept was backed by a £2.7m crowdfunding campaign in 2023. At the time, Honest Burgers stated its ambition to “challenge the big guys” with a smashburger that cooks in under two minutes.
Honest Burgers was co-founded by friends Tom Barton and Philip Eeles in Brighton in 2009.