The Counter Aims to Be the Next Shake Shack With International Expansion

Los Angeles brand expansions are all the rage these days, and Culver City-based The Counter is no exception. The fast casual build your own burger spot has been popular in the Southland for years, with plenty of growth in their dozen years in the game. There are currently 40 U.S. locations and a small handful overseas, but that number is about to get much, much bigger.

Within 2015 alone, the plan for The Counter and their offshoot BUILT Custom Burgers is to land locations in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and Mexico City. The latter is part of a new plan for the brand to engage the Mexican market overall, while franchise agreements are bringing licensed burger restaurants to the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Domestically, another eight locations are coming as well, which means by 2016 there should be at least 50 iterations of The Counter and BUILT stateside alone. Apparently in a world with rising food costs and animal protein consumption issues, people are still willing to stuff themselves silly on upscale burgers.