Restaurant Brands Europe taps RELEX to improve forecasting accuracy and reduce food waste

Restaurant Brands Europe (RBE), a quick service restaurant (QSR) operator in Southern Europe, is working with RELEX Solutions to improve demand forecasting and automate ingredient replenishment across its restaurant network.

The deployment will support more than 1,350 Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons locations across Spain, Italy, and Portugal. 

RBE previously worked with a planning tool complemented by some manual processes. This approach supported the company’s growth, but the acceleration of expansion and increasing operational complexity made it necessary to evolve toward a more scalable and automated solution capable of responding consistently to changes in restaurant level demand.

RELEX generates order proposals based on local demand, helping ensure locations have the right ingredients when needed and reducing excess inventory and food waste across restaurants with different demand patterns. 

“We needed a planning system that could support our scale today and adapt as we continue to expand,” says Alejandro Gutiérrez Álvarez, Director of Operations Strategy at Restaurant Brands Europe. “Improving forecast accuracy and automating ordering will help our teams focus on running restaurants, while giving us better control over availability and waste across all markets.” 

“Restaurant Brands Europe is managing rapid growth across multiple brands and countries, all supplied through a centralised distribution model,” says Rui Saraiva, VP, South & EMEA at RELEX Solutions.

“With RELEX, forecasting and replenishment are configured to fit the realities of QSR operations, from how restaurants place orders to how data flows between systems. That flexibility allows RBE to address brand and market specific needs without giving up a consistent planning approach across the network.” 

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

Forecasting and replenishment will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards will open for entries in April. They celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Thursday, 15th October.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.