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Kenny Rogers Roasters is a chain of chicken-based restaurants. It was founded in 1991 by country musician Kenny Rogers and former KFC CEO John Y. Brown, Jr., who is a former governor of the U.S. state of Kentucky. John Y. Brown Jr. had also been an investor in Kentucky Fried Chicken from 1964 to 1971. The menu of Kenny Rogers Roasters was originally centered on wood-fired rotisserie chicken. After closing all of its U.S. operations and a series of ownership changes, Kenny Rogers Roasters now operates principally in Asia and is now part of Malaysian conglomerate Berjaya Corporation Berhad. The Kenny Rogers Roasters brand comes under a worldwide franchise owned by Kenny Rogers Roasters International Corporation, a subsidiary of Roasters Asia Pacific (Cayman) Limited which itself is owned by Berjaya Corporation Berhad. ==History== In 1991, country singer/songwriter Kenny Rogers ventured into the fast-food business and co-founded Kenny Rogers Roasters with former Kentucky governor John Y. Brown, Jr. Kenny Rogers Roasters opened its first restaurant in Coral Springs, Florida in August 1991. By 1995, the menu had expanded to include turkey, ribs, and various side dishes. The chain eventually grew to over 350 restaurants, including locations in Canada, the Middle East and Asia. The establishment became so well known an entire episode of ''Seinfeld'' ("The Chicken Roaster") was dedicated to Kramer's love of Kenny Rogers Roasters chicken which started after he and Jerry Seinfeld switched apartments due to a bright red neon light shining through Kramer's window so he could not sleep. Roasters found itself in competition with Boston Chicken (later Boston Market) and several smaller roasted chicken chains.〔Stouffer, "A High Stakes Game of Chicken"〕 Kentucky Fried Chicken also introduced a roasted chicken line of products called Rotisserie Gold to compete with Roasters and Boston Chicken.〔 In December 1992, Clucker's, a smaller player in the roasted chicken market, sued Kenny Rogers Roasters, claiming the chain had copied its recipes and menus.〔Seline, "Clucker's is First Casualty in Chicken Wars"〕 The lawsuit continued until Roasters purchased a majority stake in Cluckers in August 1994.〔 Brown expanded it to a chain of more than 425 restaurants before selling his interest in the franchise to the Malaysia-based Berjaya Group in 1996.〔Hutt, "Kenny Rogers Wants to Take Name with Him from Bankrupt Roaster Chain"〕 In 1996 it was reported that the chain was to open in the United Kingdom having purchased locations is various cities, at this point annual sales topped $300 million. However, the planned openings in Britain never materialized.〔https://www.thecaterer.com/articles/24901/kenny-rogers-ready-to-roast-in-uk〕 The company entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 1998 and was bought by Nathan's Famous, Inc. for U.S.$1.25 million (US$ million in more recent terms) on April 1, 1999; as a result of restructuring, many locations closed. By 2000, the chain was down to 90 franchised restaurants, 40 of those in the U.S.〔 Nathan's Famous divested itself of the chain in 2008, selling it to their Asian franchiser, Roasters Asia Pacific (Cayman) Limited,〔(Kenny Rogers Roasters Purchase Agreement ), ''TechAgreements''. Retrieved on 2009-06-29〕 a company which is owned by Berjaya Group of Malaysia. The last Kenny Rogers Roasters operating in North America was located in the Ontario Mills mall in Ontario, California; it closed on December 31, 2011.〔(Ontario Mills' Big Food gets much, much smaller ) John Plessel, insidesocal.com, December 31, 2011〕 The 2008 purchase agreement allowed for〔Section 2.13(a) of (Kenny Rogers Roasters Purchase Agreement ), ''TechAgreements''. Retrieved on 2009-06-29〕 Nathan's Famous and Miami Subs to continue selling Kenny Rogers Roasters items in their restaurants.〔Section 2.13(c) of (Kenny Rogers Roasters Purchase Agreement ), ''TechAgreements''. Retrieved on 2009-06-29〕 Nathan's continues to serve Kenny Rogers Roasters items in select locations, such as its flagship location on Coney Island,〔(Dinner at Kenny Rogers Roasters on Coney Island ). ''Fast Food NYC''. Retrieved on 2009-06-29.〕 Miami Subs (since sold off by Nathan's) no longer has a "Kenny Rogers" section on their menu.〔(Miami Subs Grill Menu ) via (Miami Subs website ). Last updated November 18, 2008 Retrieved 2009-11-03〕 Despite the chain's end in the United States, Kenny Rogers Roasters continues to flourish in Asia under the ownership of Berjaya Group. An article published by Time.com in 2011 reported that Kenny Rogers Roasters had grown to almost 140 restaurants across Asia, with continued expansion in Malaysia, the Philippines, and more recently southern China. In Malaysia, the Kenny Rogers Roasters chain of restaurants is developed and operated by Berjaya Roasters (M) Sdn Bhd. Under a corporate exercise by Berjaya Corporation Berhad in 2011, Berjaya Roasters (M) Sdn Bhd became a wholly owned subsidiary of Berjaya Food Berhad. In March 2011, Berjaya Food Berhad listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia. Effectively, Berjaya Food Berhad is responsible for the establishment, operation and expansion of Kenny Rogers Roasters restaurants in Malaysia. This includes the development of the Kenny Rogers Roasters brand, management of menu items and acting as central procurement agent for Kenny Rogers Roasters restaurants across Malaysia. Kenny Rogers Roasters started operations in Bangladesh in December 2012 with a restaurant in Gulshan, Dhaka. The company also has an outlet in Jamuna Future Park, with other outlets on the way. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Kenny Rogers Roasters」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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