A MAJOR US fast food chain has confirmed the exact locations of its first UK restaurants, The Sun can reveal.

American fast food giant Chick-fil-A is crossing the pond and bringing its beloved chicken sandwiches to our high streets next year.

1

The Sun can exclusively reveal the exact locations of their first five UK restaurants.

Chick-fil-A operates more than 3,000 sites across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada.

As part of its UK-wide expansion, the fast food chain has confirmed that it will open two restaurants in Belfast and single sites in Leeds, Liverpool, and London.

The sites will open over two years starting in 2025, and Chick-fil-A has now opened applications for those wishing to take on a franchise.

The brand’s initial expansion into the UK will create approximately 400 new jobs.

Anita Costello, chief international officer at Chick-fil-A, Inc, told The Sun: “Serving communities is at the heart of everything we do, and we look forward to bringing Chick-fil-A’s delicious food and signature hospitality to Belfast, Leeds, Liverpool and London, and continuing our long-term investment in the U.K.

“From job creation to supporting local causes, we are excited about the positive impact our first restaurants will have in the communities they serve.”

We’ve already had a first taste of what will be on the menu when the first store opens next year.

Several signature items, including the chain’s most popular menu item, the original Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich, nuggets, and waffle fries, will be venturing across the pond.

The brand’s expansion into the UK will also bring tasty but unfamiliar options not commonly available in the UK, including savoury biscuits and ranch-flavoured dipping sauces.

Chick-fil-A’s UK-based restaurants plan to serve chicken sourced from the UK and Ireland, along with 100% free-range eggs from welfare-certified farms.

For now, eager fans of the chain will need to hold tight to find out exactly what will be served in its UK restaurants.

Ahead of its high street launch, The Sun visited the company’s headquarters in Atlanta to find out what the fuss is all about.

Chick-fil-A is a family-run business that operates a franchise-style system.

Anyone can apply to operate a restaurant, and applications for potential franchisees wishing to open a UK restaurant are now open.

However, Chick-fil-A’s model differs from other fast food chains we know in the UK – like McDonald’s, KFC or Burger King – as franchisees don’t own the sites themselves.

Franchisees – or operators, as they are known – run the businesses daily, but Chick-fil-A owns the rest, including the brick-and-mortar site.

This means the company owns the actual restaurant, while the franchisee operates the business on their behalf, resulting in a smaller outlay and less risk for operators.

In the US, the initial franchise agreement costs just $10,000 (£7,932), while a McDonald’s franchise typically costs between £350k and £1,85 million in the UK.

Chick-fil-A also only lets its operators run up to three stores, and the majority of them only run a single location.

With other fast food chains, you can run several at once and even build a mini-empire, though that requires significant investment.

Like in the US, each UK restaurant will be able to participate in Chick-fil-A’s Shared Table programme.

This initiative redirects surplus food from Chick-fil-A restaurants to local soup kitchens, shelters, food banks, and non-profits in need.

Joanna Symonds, head of UK operations, said: “We’ve always cared about the impact of our restaurants on the local communities that we serve, and we strive to positively impact areas throughout the UK”

US FAST FOOD EXPANSION INTO THE UK

Chick-fil-A is not the only US fast-food chain to have taken a leap across the pond in recent years.

In July, Dave’s Hot Chicken announced plans to open 60 restaurants across the UK and Ireland.

Popeyes entered the UK market in 2021 and has proved to be a hit with ravenous customers ever since.

In just 30 months, the brand opened over 38 restaurants across the UK.

It has plans to reach the 60-restaurant milestone by the end of 2024.

US burger chain Wendy’s, which already has 31 sites in the UK, will also cut the ribbon on eight new locations this year.

The chain returned to the UK high street in 2021 after a 20-year hiatus.

Wendy’s is most famous for its square-shaped hamburgers, designed to maximize the amount of meat in every bite.

Shake Shack, which started out as a hotdog cart, recently opened its first restaurant inside a UK train station.

Brits commuting in St. Pancras International Station can now grab their favourite burgers before jumping onto their train.

The new spot marks the fast food giant’s 16th location in the UK since it was launched in Covent Garden in 2013.

While most of Shake Shack’s UK sites are based in London, bosses have expanded into other locations in recent years, including Essex, Oxford, and Cardiff.

Shake Shack’s humble beginnings trace back to a New York hot dog cart helmed by Randy Garutti.

Wingstop currently operates 39 sites across the UK and will open 15 more in 2024.

Lemon Pepper Holdings, which runs the fast food chain’s UK portfolio, said the move would create up to 750 jobs.

The US hospitality brand said it is its biggest year of expansion since launching Wingstop in the UK six years ago.

Dunkin’ Donuts, which currently has 30 stores in the UK, hopes to open 30 new branches over the next couple of years as part of a major expansion plan.

Dunkin’ Donuts landed in the UK in St John’s in Liverpool in May 2016.

The chain is huge in the US, with almost 9,500 stores spread across the country.

It sells a range of doughnuts, other sweet treats, and hot and cold drinks.

As the Federal Reserve starts to lower interest rates, a perennial theory has returned: that small- and mid-caps will, for a time, grow more quickly than the S&P 500. Today on the show, Katie Martin, Rob Armstrong, and Aiden Reiter discuss whether that is good, or even true. Also, as the seasons change, we go long and short knitwear.

For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer

You can email Robert Armstrong at robert.armstrong@ft.com and Katie Martin at katie.martin@ft.com.

View our accessibility guide.

HOPES that the much-loathed business rates system would be totally ditched in new reforms were dashed by the Government yesterday.

Exchequer Secretary James Murray confirmed at the Labour conference that any fresh system would still aim to raise the same sum of money from firms.

4

Speaking of the overhaul, the Ealing North MP — who has responsibility for the rates — told a British Retail Consortium fringe event in Liverpool: “It’s within the current envelope. It’s all about raising the same amount of money overall, that’s the commitment.”

The Treasury is expected to collect £30billion in the next year from unavoidable business rates — of which retail will pay around £8billion, some 11 per cent of the entire sector’s profits.

There are warnings a failure to create a fairer system will lead to 17,300 more shop closures over the next decade.

The British Retail Consortium argues that retail, as the biggest private sector employer, pays more than its fair share and should have a 20 per cent “rates corrector”.

Shop bosses have argued that rates are the biggest barrier to hiring new staff.

Nick Stowe, CEO of Monsoon Accessorize, which shut 100 shops in the aftermath of the pandemic, said: “We’re trying to convince ourselves to open in places like Durham and it’s really difficult.

We have landlords giving us stores rent-free, but rates are still so high, we can’t do it.”

Confirming he had cut staff, he added: “The knock-on effect is we’re busy trying to squeeze down things that I’m sure the Labour Government don’t want us to squeeze down.”

Matalan boss Jo Whitfield said business rates were a “real barrier” for retail and it was hard to justify keeping shops open in areas of falling sales.

She said the BRC plan for a rates corrector would “almost immediately” prompt retailers to invest in stores.

Mr Murray said Labour wanted to level the playing field between the high street and online, but the BRC called business rates a 20-year failure.

We’ll come to Wrexham

4

Advertisement

4

THE Hollywood effect has trickled into the rental market — with Wrexham now the busiest UK area for tenants.

The Welsh city has boomed since Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought its football club in 2021 and Netflix screened its Welcome to Wrexham series.

It now has 54 rental inquiries for every property, according to Rightmove. The demand is nearly three times the national average of 19 inquiries.

Glasgow is the second most in-demand city, with 52 inquiries per property, and Bristol close behind on 51.

High demand has kept average rents rising by 8.5 per cent — four times the average rate of inflation, official figures show.

Tim Bannister at Rightmove said: “To be receiving upwards of 50 inquiries per property is astonishing. It shows work still needs to be done to improve the balance of supply and demand.”

Irn Bru’s fizzed up by Euros

4

THE maker of Irn Bru said its tongue-in-cheek Euros campaign had paid off, with strong sales of “Scotland’s other national drink”.

AG Barr yesterday reported it had shrugged off a soggy summer and Scotland’s early exit in the football tournament with higher sales and market share growth in England.

Its cheeky advert played on the German word for football team, “Mannschaft” and it was deemed one of the best campaigns of the Euros.

Overall, the soft drink maker posted a 5.2 per cent rise in overall sales to £221.3million, but its pre-tax profits were 10 per cent lower due to the closure of its delivery business, Barr Direct.

Euan Sutherland, the former Superdry, Saga and Co-op chief who recently took charge, said “AG Barr’s an excellent business with exciting, tangible and deliverable growth opportunity.”

Pay rise a red card

CARD FACTORY, the budget greetings retailer, has blamed the rising national living wage for a near-halving of its profits.

The chain, which has more than 1,070 stores across the UK and Ireland, reported a 43 per cent slump to £14million, despite sales rising by 3.7 per cent in the six months to July.

The firm said it had faced £64.4million of extra staffing costs compared to last year. Its value slumped by a fifth yesterday as investors dumped shares.

THE cost of fixing a blocked sink or broken boiler can now be split on Klarna’s Buy Now Pay Later scheme.

The Swedish finance firm has partnered with small business platform XERO so tradesmen can accept payments in interest-free instalments.

A SEASIDE town in North Wales is famed for having some of the best weather in the UK.

Alongside beautiful scenery, rich maritime history and lots of family-friendly attractions, Porthmadog has become known for its good weather.

4

4

Advertisement

The coastal town, which has a population around 4,200, regularly tops the UK weather charts.

Its hottest temperature in 2023 was a scorching 31°C, which was recorded on Tuesday 14th June.

The Met Office considers Porthmadog to be one of the warmest places in the UK, and there are a number of reasons why.

Its unique location on the Glaslyn Estuary protects it from harsh winds by the Eryri (Snowdonia) mountains. 

It has its own microclimate that helps keep it warm – air funneling over the mountains sinks and warms.

And its located in the west of Wales, where higher temperatures last longer.

While British holidaymakers looking to chase the sun may want to head to Portmadog for this reason alone, there are many other things the town has going for it.

It has a lively attractive harbour to explore

Porthmadog Harbour is a popular mooring area for yachtsmen and pleasure boaters from all over Europe, and many visitors enjoy spending the afternoon watching the different boats roll in.

It’s also a great place to enjoy local cuisine with lots of restaurants to choose from.

You can take a ride on a steam train through the Welsh countryside

Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways is a group of heritage railways in Wales that offer scenic journeys through Snowdonia National Park.

There’s a 13.5-mile journey that runs from the harbour in Porthmadog to the slate-quarrying town of Blaenau Ffestiniog offering incredible views of mountains, forests, lakes and waterfalls.

You can learn about the town’s rich maritime history

Porthmadog’s Maritime Museum is situated in the last remaining slate shed on the harbour.

It has a large collection of artefacts depicting the seafaring activities of the area – the development of the port, the shipbuilding, the ships, and the lives of the seafarers. There’s also a special area with activities for children.

It has a beautiful beach with lots of activities and mountain views

Black Rock Sands is a beach with some unique features – you can drive straight on to the beach and there are stunning views of the nearby mountains and Harlech and Criccieth castles.

There’s also lots of activities available including water sports, cave exploring and rock pooling.

You can pick up some vinyl from a famous record shop

Cob Records, close of Porthmadog Harbour Station, is a well-known vinyl store because of its large selection of both old and modern music.

4

Advertisement

4

The shop’s been open almost 50 years and used to mail out 7,500 LPs to customers around the world.

The fact that such a relatively small record shop in a small
town like Porthmadog was exporting in such volume worldwide attracted a lot of media attention, and lots of documentaries featuring the business were made for local and national TV and radio.

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Caroline Ellison, the former boss of the trading firm through which FTX gambled billions of dollars in customer funds, has been sentenced to two years in prison, despite aiding prosecutors in the criminal case against Sam Bankman-Fried, the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange’s founder.

Judge Lewis Kaplan imposed the sentence during a hearing in a New York federal court on Tuesday. “To all the victims and everyone I harmed . . . I am so so sorry,” a tearful Ellison told the court ahead of Kaplan’s decision. “I am deeply ashamed.”

The penalty for Ellison, who ran FTX-affiliated trading fund Alameda Research, contrasts sharply with the 25-year prison sentence handed to Bankman-Fried in March, which is among the longest US sentences ever for a white-collar criminal. Another former FTX executive, Ryan Salame, received a 90-month sentence in May.

FTX was one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges when it collapsed in November 2022 following revelations that Alameda had secretly siphoned billions of dollars in customer deposits.

Ellison, who quickly pleaded guilty to fraud and money-laundering charges soon after FTX’s implosion, testified for several days at Bankman-Fried’s trial, in which she was the star witness.

She walked the jury through spreadsheets, internal documents and private Signal chats that painted a picture of a years-long criminal conspiracy by the one-time crypto billionaire. 

While on the stand, Ellison revealed the FTX founder had directed her and her ex-colleagues to steal roughly $10bn of customer deposits from the exchange to fund risky investments and repay loans.

She said Bankman-Fried had directed her to create seven “alternative” balance sheets for Alameda, some of which disguised billions of dollars of kickbacks to FTX executives, and was ordered to cover up how the trading group was “borrowing $10bn from FTX customers”.

A version of Alameda’s accounts that made its “assets look larger” was provided to crypto lenders, including Genesis, which was calling in loans amid a sharp downturn in the sector, Ellison testified. Genesis’s lending unit later went bankrupt.

Prosecutors had urged leniency for Ellison, 29. In a letter to Kaplan ahead of the hearing, they highlighted how Ellison “was crucial to the government’s successful prosecution of Samuel Bankman-Fried for one of the largest financial frauds in history”, and provided “substantial assistance in the investigation”.

They added that Ellison, who was formerly in an “on-again, off-again” romantic relationship with Bankman-Fried, was humiliated in the press as a result of her testimony and had her private conversations with a therapist divulged in Michael Lewis’s book on the FTX collapse.

“The government cannot think of another co-operating witness in recent history who has received a greater level of attention and harassment,” they wrote.

A graduate of Stanford University, Ellison met Bankman-Fried at high-speed trading company Jane Street, before leaving to join Alameda with him. She was in charge of running the trading firm and had described feeling trapped and pulled into Bankman-Fried’s warped moral worldview.

While awaiting sentencing, Ellison has written a novella “set in Edwardian England and loosely based on her sister Kate’s imagined amorous exploits”, the former executive’s mother revealed in a letter to the court.

Two other former senior FTX executives who also pleaded guilty, Nishad Singh and Gary Wang, are set to be sentenced later this year.

OVER half a million young people are thought to be missing out on an average of £2,212 which is being held in forgotten bank accounts.

Child Trust Funds are long-term, tax-free savings accounts which were set up for every child born between September 2002 and January 2 2011.

1

The Government deposited £250 for every child during that time period, or £500 if they came from a low income family earning around £16,000 a year or below.

An extra £250 or £500, depending on their families’ economic status, was deposited when the child turned seven.

In 2010, this was reduced to £50 for better off households and £100 for those on a lower income.

The scheme was eventually scrapped in 2011 as part of cost-cutting measures following the 2009 financial crisis and was later replaced with Junior ISAs.

Currently, parents or friends can deposit up to £9,000 into the child’s account tax-free, with the money usually invested into shares.

The youngest children across Britian to have these accounts are about 13 years old, so have around five years before they can access the cash.

It is important to note that savings in these accounts are not held by the Government but are held in banks, building societies or other saving providers. 

The money stays in the account until it’s withdrawn or re-invested.

Young people can take control of their Child Trust Fund at 16, but can only withdraw funds when they turn 18 and the account matures.

However, new figures released by the HMRC have found that more than 670,000 18-22 year olds are yet to claim their Child Trust Fund.

The tax office said that the average savings pot is worth £2,212.

Angela MacDonald, HMRC’s second permanent secretary and deputy chief executive, said the government wants to “reunite young people with their money and we’re making the process as simple as possible.”

She added: “You don’t need to pay anyone to find your Child Trust Fund for you, locate yours today by searching ‘find your Child Trust Fund’ on GOV.UK.”

How to track down a Child Trust Fund

If you were born in the UK between 2002 and 2006 it is worth checking to see if you have cash in a Child Trust Fund.

Parents were either given a voucher to set one up or HMRC set one up on a child’s behalf.

There are a number of third party groups offering to search for Child Trust Funds but it worth noting that they will charge a fee so you might loose a chunk of your money.

The Government has a free tool you can use online to help track down your fund.

You can find this by searching for “find a Child Trust Fund” on GOV.UK.

You’ll need to have a few personal details to hand to do the search, including your date of birth and National Insurance (NI) number.

Your NI number remains the same for your entire life. It’s made up of two letters, six numbers and a final letter. 

You can find this number on your payslips or by downloading the HMRC app, which can be downloaded on the Apple or Google Play Store.

When you’re done filling this out, HMRC will then send you a letter revealing what company has your Child Trust Fund.

What to do once you have claimed the money

Usually, people put the cash straight into a bank account, invest it, or transfer it into an ISA.

You can also ask your Child Trust Fund Provider to give you the money and get it cashed into your bank account.

This way you’ll need to share the bank account details you wish to transfer the cash into with HMRC.

But if you’d rather invest it, you can transfer it into an ISA.

The Sun recently broke down whether or not an ISA is right for you, which you can read here.