Whataburger Opens First Tampa Bay Location in Largo
Texas-based fast-food chain Whataburger has opened a new restaurant in Largo, Florida, marking its official entry into the Tampa Bay market. The company has indicated that further expansion is planned for the region.
- The expansion into new markets like Tampa Bay follows the 2019 sale of a majority stake in Whataburger from the founding Dobson family to BDT Capital Partners, a Chicago-based merchant bank. This move was intended to provide strategic vision and long-term capital to accelerate the company's growth. - The Largo restaurant is the first of eight Whataburger locations planned for the Tampa Bay region by the end of 2027. Two more locations are scheduled to open in the spring of 2026 in Brandon and Lutz. - As of early 2025, the San Antonio-based chain operated over 1,130 restaurants across 17 states, with system-wide annual revenue reaching approximately $3.8 billion. - The company's growth strategy includes a renewed focus on franchising, which it had paused for 20 years prior to the acquisition by BDT Capital Partners. - The investment to open a Whataburger franchise is estimated to be between $1.2 million and $3 million per location. The average annual revenue for a single franchised restaurant is approximately $3.54 million. - Whataburger enters a crowded and growing Florida market, which was projected to have over 19,500 fast-food businesses and a market size of $26.6 billion in 2026. - The burger and sandwich segment, Whataburger's core category, is the largest in the global fast-food industry, accounting for 38.1% of the market in 2025.
