Famous Brands Limited is a public company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa. Its head offices are in Midrand, Johannesburg. The company is Africa's leading quick-service and casual dining restaurant franchisor. The company's global footprint of franchised stores spreads across the world, totaling 2782 stores (2017): South Africa 2270, Eswatini 6, Mauritius 21, Mozambique 3, Zimbabwe 9, Malawi 11, Angola 7, Zambia 42, Botswana 35, Namibia 50, Kenya 7, Ghana 1, Ethiopia 1, Nigeria 125, Sudan 6, Oman 1, UAE 8, Saudi Arabia 1, Egypt 5, Greece 1, Ireland 6 and United Kingdom 166 (2017). Besides its core business activities of quick service and casual dining, the company is also involved in manufacturing and logistics with a focus on owning and managing the back-end supply chain of its restaurants. History The company was founded by George Halamandres in the 1950s, believing there was a gap in the South African market for an American style steak house. Halamandres opened the first Steers steakhouse restaurant in the early 1960s. In the 1980s Halamandres' son John Halamandres became CEO and rapidly grew the Steers Steakhouse franchise as a fast food takeaway restaurant. In 1994 the company listed on the JSE and in 1997 the company acquired the Debonairs Pizza franchise followed by the FishAways franchise in 1999. Brands Famous Brands has acquired a large number of restaurant brands globally and in South Africa in particular by pursuing an aggressive brand acquisition strategy. In September 2016 the company acquired the British hamburger franchise Gourmet Burger Kitchen and its 75 restaurants for R2.1 billion (US$143.3 million). References External links Official website Companies based in Johannesburg Companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange Food and drink companies of South Africa