Who Owns Culver's?

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Those from the Midwest or anyone who loves a quality fast-food burger are likely familiar with Culver's. Best known for its ButterBurgers and unique accompaniments, like cheese curds and Concrete Mixer frozen custard, Culver's has been expanding fast in recent years, adding 50 to 60 locations annually. In between bites, you may wonder who owns the growing chain. Unlike some complex corporate situations, Culver's ownership is relatively simple. It's primarily privately owned by the founding Culver family, with a small portion in the hands of a private equity firm with extensive experience in the food industry, and individual franchises owned by local operators.

The founders of Culver's, Craig and Lea Culver, with Craig's parents, opened the chain in 1984 in Sauk City, Wisconsin. This family-focused ownership never really changed, even after the company began awarding franchises in 1990. The only exception came in 2017, when the Culver family announced a portion of the company had been sold to private-equity firm Roark Capital, with representatives of the firm joining Culver's board. 

Neither side revealed what percentage was sold or for how much, although the sale announcement mentioned the family retained majority ownership. In recognition of the move (one of the biggest changes to ever hit Culver's), the announcement also directly addressed future ownership questions, noting there were no plans to sell additional shares in the company. In the nine years since, there's no public evidence that position has changed.

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Although franchise relationships aren't anything unusual in the fast-food world, Culver's stands out somewhat in how it encourages its franchisees to operate its restaurants. Since the first franchises were awarded, owner-operators have been required to work in the restaurant itself, not just hold a financial interest. It's a model aimed at ensuring awareness and quality, a philosophy that's helped the chain grow to over 1,000 locations in more than two dozen states.

Culver's is relatively unusual in being a large, mostly privately held fast-food company. Major competitors like McDonald's are most commonly public companies or part of publicly traded corporate parents, such as Restaurant Brands International, which owns Burger King and Popeyes, or Yum Brands, owners of Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut. Not coincidentally, some of the better known privately-owned fast-food companies (including Arby's, Dunkin', and Jimmy John's) are owned by Inspire Brands, which is itself an investment vehicle for the same Roark Capital that bought into Culver's.

There's no doubt Culver's manages to stand out in a crowded fast-food landscape, thanks to its quality food and commitment to Midwest traditions, like how it fries its fish. However, behind the scenes, it also stands apart from many burger chain competitors with its primarily private, family ownership, even as it's gone from regional icon to nationally known fast-food favorite.