Max Burgers: History, Key Facts and Reviews

1968-1981: from X-grillen in Gällivare to Max

Max began in 1968 as X-grillen, a grill kiosk that Curt Bergfors and Britta Fredriksson opened in Gällivare, north of the Arctic Circle (MAX history). The name Max came from Curt’s nickname, borrowed from the actor Max von Sydow (Wikipedia). The chain spread through Norrland first: Skellefteå in 1970, Luleå in 1971 and Umeå in 1976. For years the family also ran hotels, a disco, video shops and a solarium alongside the burger business.

1982-2001: Stockholm, a fight with McDonald’s and a burger-only focus

Max reached Stockholm in 1982 with a two-storey restaurant on Drottninggatan. In 1984 McDonald’s challenged the name “Big MAX”, and the two companies settled. In 1991, by its own account, it became the first Swedish chain to outsell McDonald’s, in Umeå and Luleå. In 1999 the family sold its hotels and side businesses to concentrate on burgers alone, and by 2001 Max covered the whole of Sweden.

2002-2017: the second generation, climate labels and expansion abroad

Richard and Christoffer Bergfors, the founders’ sons, took over operations in 2002, when sales were about SEK 350 million (Tidningen Näringslivet). In 2008 Max became the first restaurant chain to climate-compensate its entire menu. The first restaurant outside Sweden opened on Egertorget in Oslo on May 11, 2011, followed by Copenhagen on March 1, 2013 (Swedish Wikipedia). The 100th restaurant opened on Lidingö in 2015, the vegan Green range arrived in 2016 and Poland followed with Wrocław on September 1, 2017. Franchised restaurants in Egypt and the United Arab Emirates did not last: the Emirates closed in 2018, and Egypt no longer appears among the chain’s countries.

2022-2026: 200 restaurants and a new CEO

Max is now growing past 200 restaurants without outside investors. In 2022 it took over the site of McDonald’s first Swedish restaurant, at Kungsgatan 4 in Stockholm. Turnover reached SEK 5.4 billion in 2023, up 12%, with 193 restaurants (MAX press release). On September 15, 2025, the 200th opened in Gislaved: 160 in Sweden, 26 in Poland, 8 in Norway and 6 in Denmark (MAX press release). That autumn Martin Oppenheimer became CEO and Richard Bergfors moved to chairman. The target is 300 restaurants by 2030; the website now lists 207.

Key dates

• 1968: Curt Bergfors and Britta Fredriksson open X-grillen in Gällivare.
• 1982: first Stockholm restaurant, on Drottninggatan.
• 1999: the family sells its side businesses to focus on burgers.
• 2008: Max climate-compensates its entire menu, a first for a restaurant chain.
• 2011: first restaurant abroad, in Oslo, on May 11.
• 2017: first Polish restaurant, in Wrocław.
• 2025: 200th restaurant in Gislaved and a new CEO, Martin Oppenheimer.