How Restaurant Brand International's CEO plans to turn around Burger King

Restaurant Brands International (QSR) CEO José Cil is ready to get cooking when it comes to Burger King's “Reclaim the Flame” plan to accelerate growth in the United States.

"It's a really exciting moment for us at the Burger King brand here in the U.S. ... We've spent the last 9 to 12 months with new leadership at Burger King in the U.S., working closely with our franchisees on building a plan to engage them, the broader system, our team members, and our guests on our path and plan to reclaim the flame," Cil told Yahoo Finance.

The $400 million plan to bring Burger King into the future will rollout over the next two years. It is comprised of $150 million in advertising and digital investments to “Fuel the Flame” and $250 million for a “Royal Reset” involving restaurant technology, kitchen equipment, building enhancements, remodels and relocations.

This plan comes a year after the company expanded its Royal perks loyalty program to two-thirds of restaurants.

According to the release, the plan was endorsed by Burger King Franchisees, representing 93% of all U.S. restaurants, who have agreed to co-invest in increased advertising in the next few years. Cil is confident this funding will modernize the nearly 70-year-old Burger King restaurant portfolio.

He says the major investment is "confirmation and validation that we have conviction behind this plan and behind the team and behind the BK U.S. business and brand."

HACKETTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY - SEPTEMBER 02: Isaiah Shields pauses to check his location in a Burger King as he walks across America towards his destination in Maine on September 02, 2022 in Hackettstown, New Jersey. Isaiah, who left a career in finance, will have walked for nearly two years and over 3000 miles when he concludes his journey. The 29 year old from Utah, started his walk by traveling West to Seattle and then down to Texas and Florida before making his way up the East Coast towards Maine. Isaiah walks an average 20 plus miles a day and camps along the roadside or accepts offers for stays at local homes. He is documenting his trip on Facebook and thinks he will walk back home to Utah from Maine after a rest. Along the way he documents the cities and towns he passes through and enjoys the encounters he has with inquisitive locals. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
HACKETTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY - SEPTEMBER 02: Isaiah Shields pauses to check his location in a Burger King as he walks across America towards his destination in Maine on September 02, 2022 in Hackettstown, New Jersey. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) (Spencer Platt via Getty Images)

In the fiscal second quarter, Burger King's same-store sales were up 13.2% and up 35.8% year-over-year. Net restaurant growth lagged behind its fellow names under the Restaurant Brands International umbrella, up 2.8%, lower than at Tim Hortons, up 5.7%, and Popeye's, up 8.1%.

Shares of Restaurant Brands International are down 7 percent compared to a year ago.

Brooke DiPalma is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.

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