Sean Carthew is the Founder and Managing Director of Burger Urge, one of Australia’s leading independently owned premium burger brands. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Property Economics from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and has formal qualifications as a registered property valuer in the state of Queensland.

Prior to launching Burger Urge, Sean had a career in commercial real estate and has held various professional roles within the property industry, including valuation, development, acquisitions and construction management.

Burger Urge opened its first store in Fortitude Valley in 2007 as a 52sqm take away shop, and over the last 2 decades, evolved into a nationally recognised retail brand operating across four states. Burger Urge operates 33 venues generating annual revenue of approximately AUD $75 million. To this day, the business remains independently owned and has been built with retained earnings without any external funding, private equity investment or institutional backing.

Sean is a firm believer that creativity and curiosity, combined with the willingness to think differently, are the essential ingredients for building great companies, and he sees BU more as a startup than a market leader. He dislikes being referred to as an expert and prefers to think of himself as being in the 19th year of his business apprenticeship.