The relaunch encompasses everything from the brand vision to its corporate identity and packaging, store design and menus, staff uniforms and standards, even the retail space and choice of equipment. The only thing that hasn’t changed is the reason that Steers has won both the Best Burger and Best Chips categories in the Leisure Options awards for the past 15 years – the mouth-watering product range.

Steers is owned by Famous Brands. This is the fifth revamp in the brand’s 50 year-history.

“We operate in such a competitive environment; it’s crucial that we continue innovating and reinventing ourselves to keep the brand fresh and enticing,” says Steers managing executive, Val Bourdos.

Steers worked closely with a design team from the Design Partnership to ensure that the brand development was in tune with consumer expectations, and that the new positioning is projected not only by the new CI and signage, but also brought to life at every consumer touchpoint.

Design Partnership’s Callie van der Merwe explains the thinking behind the new store concept:

“If you look at the brand when it started, it was about the product. How did the brand get people through the door? Because it had the best product. Over time, that focus turned to the environment, how to make the brand stand out from competitors. And this took the focus off the product. We wanted to reverse that, to go back to the origin and find the truthfulness in the brand, which is all about product.”

Think of it as the rebirth of the Real Burger.

From the new comtemporary CI to the new-look store concept, the new Steers brand reflects authenticity and warmth, a return to the unaffected honesty of the Real Burger, and the Real Burger joint.

The Steers ‘flame’ remains at the heart of the brand, as the Steers flame-grilled burger remains a key USP in the brand’s offering. In-store, the ‘warmth’ that the flame represents has been brought to life through the introduction of strong leather and timber elements, resulting in an atmosphere that is both inviting and unaffected.

But perhaps the biggest change is that the space is no longer divided between a back and front of store. The kitchen has been incorporated into the front customer area, bringing the product – the famous flame-grilled burger – front and centre.

‘We have created what we call a ‘naked kitchen’, which allows us to make the most of the theatre and drama of flame grilling, thereby bringing the focus onto the product,” explains Steers Operational Executive Terry Boardman.

The first new-look store is already open in The Zone, in Rosebank, and the first revamped store, in Vanderbijlpark, opened in June.

Bourdos adds that there is another benefit to the new look, in terms of cost-saving for franchisees. The new-look stores have been developed around an ‘ideal store size’ of around 100m2 and also have features like energy-saving LED signage.

“In the past, retail had the luxury of big spaces. But business has changed and we can no longer afford such largesse. As part of the redesign, we looked at the ideal store footprint that would allow for the best return on investment for our franchisees,” she explains.

The management team also took this opportunity to investigate new kitchen equipment that not only takes up less space, but also enhances product quality and production speed – both of which ultimately improve customer experience.

In keeping with the brand’s focus on the tough economy, last year saw Steers launch a new range GET REAL burgers, aimed at entry level consumers and priced at the very real price of only R9.95. For those who enjoy a much bigger burger eat, the brand has just announced the launch of a new range of the legendary King Steer burgers, one of which includes the Mighty King Steer – a large burger with 2 x 150g real beef patties!

“Other enhancements to the brand include new uniforms – Steers staff will be kitted out in jeans, hoodies, aprons and trainers, a funkier, casual look that is in keeping with the authenticity of the brand. And all packaging (for the food and retail sauces) has been redesigned not only making it more contemporary, but also serving as additional consumer touchpoint to the brand intrinsics”, says Nána Lloyd, Steers marketing executive.

Last, but certainly not least, the team has placed a great deal of emphasis on making the customer experience as ‘real’ as possible – from creating an easy flow that tells them where to place and collect orders, to calling them by name instead of an arbitrary customer number.

“It’s all about keeping the brand alive and relevant to consumers,” concludes Bourdos. “It’s just ironic that while in search of something new, we discovered the value of something old – the Real Burger!”

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