---
title: "Kura Sushi wants to be self-funded by 2031 but has a long road ahead"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/e17beb25-5ae8-4ada-a5cc-c3f8ea26e715
source: "Restaurant Business"
original_url: https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/kura-sushi-wants-be-self-funded-2031-has-long-road-ahead
author: "Joanna Fantozzi"
category: "Fine dining"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fine dining"
topics: ["Finance & M&A","Development & multi-unit","Regulation & legal"]
published: 2026-11-11T21:33:57.000Z
modified: 2026-11-12T06:01:54.367Z
image: https://cdn.informaconnect.com/platform/files/public/2026-11/background/shutterstock_2066621198%20%281%29.jpg?VersionId=CNGqMdmzZd69_mW_Sgi6e2luBUhG_WfD
---

# Kura Sushi wants to be self-funded by 2031 but has a long road ahead

**TL;DR:** Kura Sushi aims to become a self-funded business by 2031, despite facing traffic challenges and a decline in fourth-quarter sales.

*By Joanna Fantozzi, originally published in Restaurant Business on 2026-11-11. [Read the original](https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/kura-sushi-wants-be-self-funded-2031-has-long-road-ahead).*

## Story

The company is also expecting automation to bring down costs. | Photo: Shutterstock

As Kura Sushi comes off one of its toughest quarters in recent memory, the brand’s financial aspirations have become loftier than expected.

Hajime Uba, CEO of the Irvine, California-based company, said during the company’s recent fourth quarter earnings call that that since Kura is clearly “the undisputed leader of the American sushi space,” the next goal will be to generate positive free cash flow and become a self-funding business by 2031.

The only problem? Kura Sushi’s traffic challenges have been building throughout the year, culminating in a sharp decline of 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Coupled with a 5.7% decrease in same-store sales, the company will have a long road ahead as it seeks to self-fund expansion in the future, instead of relying on capital raises.

“We think that the stability of self-funding and the lack of need for a further capital raise are really the two things that our investor base would best appreciate,” Benjamin Porten, senior vice president of investor relations and system development for Kura Sushi, said during last week’s earnings call.

In order to get back to a place where the company does not need to rely on raising cash from investors in order to fund future growth, the company needs to achieve two things: return to restaurant-level operating margins of 20%, and shift from percentage-based unit growth to a unit-based strategy, with annual restaurant openings increasing each year.

In 2027, Kura expects to open 17 new restaurants — a 17% growth rate that would bring the company’s total U.S. portfolio to 115 locations. The question is, how does Kura balance aggressive expansion with its goal of funding growth internally? Part of the answer might come from technology investment, as the company has slowly been replacing human dishwashers with robot ones, which helps to drive down labor costs.

Traffic, however, remains an issue, with management acknowledging that it was a “surprising” downturn. The culprit, Porten said, is losing traffic on weekday lunches, largely due to value consideration.

“While we don't think of value as simply being price, our average check is $29,” he said. “When you think about that as a lunch ticket, it's not as affordable as some of the other options. And so, we've been specifically working on how to address this” through new combo meal options.

Like many other premium casual-dining chains in this area of consumer softness, Kura Sushi will have to prove to customers that it offers a good deal. Only then will the company be able to clear the traffic hurdles on its way to self-funded growth.

Contact Joanna at joanna.fantozzi@informa.com

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## Entities

- Restaurants (sector)
- Kura Sushi (company)
- self-funding (topic)
- challenge (topic)
- timeline (topic)

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Originally reported by Joanna Fantozzi, Restaurant Business (https://restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/kura-sushi-wants-be-self-funded-2031-has-long-road-ahead). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/e17beb25-5ae8-4ada-a5cc-c3f8ea26e715).