Today, while other chains such as Taco Bell, Popeyes, and Subway have a presence on military bases, virtually every major Army and Air Force installation hosts a BK restaurant.
Shortly after the acquisition of the chain by Pillsbury in 1967, Burger King opened its first Canadian restaurant in Windsor, Ontario, in 1969.
[1]: 66 [2] Other international locations followed soon after: Oceania in 1971 with its Australian franchise Hungry Jack's, and Europe in 1975 with a restaurant in Madrid, Spain.
[3][4] Beginning in 1982, BK and its franchisees began operating stores in several East Asian countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.
[5] While Burger King lags behind McDonald's in international locations by over 12,000 stores, by 2008 it had managed to become the largest chain in several countries, including Mexico and Spain.
[7] The company divides its international operations into three segments: The Middle East, Europe and Africa division (EMEA), Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).
In each of these regions, Burger King has established several subsidiaries to develop strategic partnerships and alliances to expand into new territories.
The company sold franchise rights to local gaming and slots machine operator Grand Parade Investments Ltd.
[25] In 1982, franchisees opened stores in several East Asian countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.
[30][31] The first outlet was opened on 29 December 2007 in the Sun Arcade, Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.
[31] As of 2008, 15 stores were in operation,[32] including five in Hong Kong Island (Central, Wanchai, Causeway Bay and Fortress Hill), five in Kowloon (Tsim Sha Tsui, Hung Hom, Mongkok, Wong Tai Sin and Tsz Wan Shan) and five in the New Territories.
However, due to fierce competition, legal problems, and rising rents, the number of stores was reduced to two (HKIA and The Peak) in late 2015.
The primary thrust was aimed at the BRIC nations, with several new master franchise agreements in those countries that will eventually create upwards of 2500 new stores by 2020.
This move puts Burger King in a superior position to its chief rival McDonald's, as it currently does not operate any locations east of the Ural Mountains.
In December 2012, BK returned to the French market, based on an agreement with multinational operator Autogrill,[80] a move that has met with some excitement in the country.
[83][84] The partnership with Autogrill is a move to consolidate BK's presence in travel plazas along major highways in France, Italy, Poland and other European nations.
[88] In 2018, BK expanded into Armenia, Azerbaijan, Greece, and the partially unrecognozed state Kosovo, as well as re-entering the Slovakian market after nearly 7 years of absence under a exclusive license from AmRest.
[147] When Burger King moved to expand its operations into Australia, it found that its business name was already trademarked by a takeaway food shop in Adelaide.