Competitive Foods Australia

Last updated

Competitive Foods Australia
Company type Private
Headquarters Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Key people
 Jack Cowin (CEO)
OwnerJack Cowin
Subsidiaries Hungry Jack's

Competitive Foods Australia (CFA) is the largest franchiser of restaurants in Australia. It is owned and operated by Jack Cowin. Its units are Hungry Jack's and, previously, some KFC stores.

Contents

Holdings

Hungry Jack's

Hungry Jack's is the exclusive Australian master franchisee of Burger King Corporation. Competitive Foods Australia owns over 400 Hungry Jack's stores. [1]

When Burger King decided to expand its operations into Australia, it found that its business name was already trademarked by a man running a small takeaway food shop in Adelaide. Thus, Burger King was forced to change the name when it decided to open stores in the country – the only time this has happened in its corporate history. Burger King provided the Australian franchisee, Jack Cowin, with a list of possible alternative names that the Australian Burger King restaurants could be branded as. The names were derived from pre-existing trademarks already registered by Burger King and its then corporate parent Pillsbury. Cowin selected the "Hungry Jack" brand name, one of Pillsbury's US pancake mixture products, and slightly changing the name to a possessive form by adding an apostrophe 's' thus forming the new name Hungry Jack's. Accordingly, the first Australian franchise of the Burger King Corporation, established in Perth in 1971, was branded as Hungry Jack's. [2]

Hungry Jack's currently owns and operates or sub-licenses all of the Hungry Jack's and Burger King restaurants in Australia. As the master franchise for the continent, the company is responsible for licensing new operators, opening its own stores and performing standards oversight of franchised locations in Australia.

KFC

In 2013, Competitive Foods sold all 44 of its KFC stores to Collins Foods for $55.6 million. [3]

Burger King Corporation v Hungry Jack's

In 1991, Hungry Jack's Pty Limited renewed its franchise agreement with Burger King Corporation which allowed Hungry Jack's to license third party franchisee. However, one of the conditions of the agreement was that Hungry Jack's had to open a certain number of stores each year for the term of the contract. In 1996, shortly after the Australian trademark on the Burger King name lapsed, Burger King Corporation made a claim that Hungry Jack's had violated the conditions of the renewed franchise agreement by failing to the expand the chain at the rate defined in the contract and sought to terminate the agreement. Under the aegis of this claim, Burger King Corporation in partnership with Royal Dutch Shell's Australian division Shell Company of Australia Ltd, began to open its own stores in 1997 beginning in Sydney and throughout the Australian regions of New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Victoria. [4] [5] [6] Additionally, Burger King Corporation sought to limit Hungry Jack's ability to open new locations in the country, whether they were corporate locations or third-party licensees. [7]

As a result of Burger King's actions, Hungry Jack's owner Jack Cowin and his company Competitive Foods Australia, began legal proceedings in 2001 against the Burger King Corporation claiming Burger King Corporation had violated the conditions of the master franchising agreement and was in breach of the contract. The Supreme Court of New South Wales agreed with Cowin and determined that Burger King Corporation had violated the terms of the contract and awarded Hungry Jack's A$46.9 million. [8] In its decision, the Court said that Burger King sought to engineer a default of the franchise agreement so that the company could limit the number of new Hungry Jack's branded restaurants and ultimately claim the Australian market as its own, which was a purpose that was extraneous to the agreement. [7] [8] [9]

After Burger King Corporation lost the case, it decided to terminate its business in the country and sold its operations and assets to its New Zealand franchise group, Trans-Pacific Foods (TPF). The terms of the sale had TPF assume oversight of the Burger King franchises in the region as the Burger King brand's master franchisee. TPF administered the chain's 81 locations until September 2003 when the new management team of Burger King Corporation reached an agreement with Hungry Jack's Pty to re-brand the existing Burger King locations to Hungry Jack's and make Hungry Jack's the sole master franchisee of both brands. An additional part of the agreement required Burger King Corporation to provide administrative and advertising support as to ensure a common marketing scheme for the company and its products. [10] TPF transferred its control of the Burger King franchises to Hungry Jack's, which subsequently renamed the majority of the remaining Burger King locations as Hungry Jack's. [5] [11] While Hungry Jack's is now the exclusive master franchisee for Burger King in Australia and has the right to allow new Burger King locations in the country, no new locations have opened and only a small handful of Burger King restaurants remain in New South Wales.

Yum! Brands and CFA

In October, 2007 a similar issue arose between KFC parent Yum! Brands and CFA over Yum's refusal to renew the franchise agreement in Western Australia. Yum was reported to have made an offer to CFA for the properties that was below market value, which CFA refused. [12] The issue has drawn a large amount of scrutiny in the local press and inspired local Labor MP Paul Papalia to call upon the Western Australian and Australian Federal governments to launch inquiries on the issue. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KFC</span> American fast food restaurant chain

KFC Corporation, doing business as KFC, is an American fast food restaurant chain that specializes in fried chicken. Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, it is the world's second-largest restaurant chain after McDonald's, with 22,621 locations globally in 150 countries as of December 2019. The chain is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, a restaurant company that also owns the Pizza Hut and Taco Bell chains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fast-food restaurant</span> Type of restaurant

A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typically part of a "meat-sweet diet", offered from a limited menu, cooked in bulk in advance and kept hot, finished and packaged to order, and usually available for take away, though seating may be provided. Fast-food restaurants are typically part of a restaurant chain or franchise operation that provides standardized ingredients and/or partially prepared foods and supplies to each restaurant through controlled supply channels. The term "fast food" was recognized in a dictionary by Merriam–Webster in 1951.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yum! Brands</span> American multinational fast food corporation

Yum! Brands, Inc., formerly Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc., is an American multinational fast food corporation listed on the Fortune 1000. Yum! operates the brands KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill, except in China, where the brands are operated by a separate company, Yum China. Yum! previously also owned Long John Silver's and A&W Restaurants. The company was created as a spin-off of PepsiCo in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burger King</span> Global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in Florida

Burger King Corporation is an American multinational chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based restaurant chain. After Insta-Burger King ran into financial difficulties, its two Miami-based franchisees David Edgerton (1927–2018) and James McLamore (1926–1996) purchased the company in 1959 and renamed it "Burger King". Over the next half-century, the company changed hands four times and its third set of owners, a partnership between TPG Capital, Bain Capital, and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, took it public in 2002. In late 2010, 3G Capital of Brazil acquired a majority stake in the company in a deal valued at US$3.26 billion. The new owners promptly initiated a restructuring of the company to reverse its fortunes. 3G, along with its partner Berkshire Hathaway, eventually merged the company with the Canadian-based doughnut chain Tim Hortons under the auspices of a new Canadian-based parent company named Restaurant Brands International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A&W Restaurants</span> American fast food chain

A&W Restaurants, Inc. is an American fast food restaurant chain distinguished by its burgers, draft root beer and root beer floats. The oldest extant restaurant chain in the United States, A&W's origins date back to 1919 when Roy W. Allen set up a roadside drink stand to offer a new thick and creamy drink, root beer, at a parade honoring returning World War I veterans in Lodi, California. Allen's employee Frank Wright partnered with him in 1922 and they founded their first restaurant in Sacramento, California in 1923. The company name was taken from the initials of their last names – Allen and Wright. The company became famous in the United States for its "frosty mugs" – the mugs were kept in a freezer and filled with A&W Root Beer just before being served to customers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungry Jack's</span> Australian fast food franchise

Hungry Jack's Pty Ltd. is an Australian fast food franchise of the Burger King Corporation. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Competitive Foods Australia, a privately held company owned by Jack Cowin. Hungry Jack's owns and operates or sub-licenses all of the Burger King/Hungry Jack's restaurants in Australia.

Jack Cowin is a Canadian-Australian businessman and entrepreneur with a long-term involvement in franchised fast food chains in Australia and Canada. Cowin brought KFC to Australia, founded and owns Hungry Jack's, which is the Burger King franchise in Australia, and has at various stages controlled the Domino's Pizza franchise in Australia prior to its 2005 listing on the ASX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Restaurant Brands</span> New Zealand fast food company

Restaurant Brands New Zealand Limited, trading as Restaurant Brands, is a New Zealand fast food company. Restaurant Brands currently operates and owns the master franchising rights for the Carl's Jr., KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell brands in New Zealand. Restaurant Brands operates most of New Zealand's stores for the brands they own rights to and provides management and support services to New Zealand's independent franchisees of the remaining stores.

The majority of the locations of international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King are privately owned franchises. While the majority of franchisees are smaller operations, several have grown into major corporations in their own right. At the end of the company's fiscal year in 2015, Burger King reported it had more than 15,000 outlets in 84 countries; of these, approximately 50% are in the United States and 99.9% are privately owned and operated. The company locations employ more than 37,000 people who serve approximately 11.4 million customers daily.

The legal issues of Burger King include several legal disputes and lawsuits involving the international fast food restaurant chain Burger King (BK) as both plaintiff and defendant in the years since its founding in 1954. These have involved almost every aspect of the company's operations. Depending on the ownership and executive staff at the time of these incidents, the company's responses to these challenges have ranged from a conciliatory dialog with its critics and litigants to a more aggressive opposition with questionable tactics and negative consequences. The company's response to these various issues has drawn praise, scorn, and accusations of political appeasement from different parties over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AmRest</span> European restaurant operator

AmRest is a European multinational casual dining, fast-food restaurant and coffee shop operator headquartered in the Spanish capital, Madrid . The company runs more than 2300 locations, mostly franchises of KFC, Pizza Hut and Starbucks, and also Burger King until 2022, but also operates its own brands of restaurants. Apart from Spain, AmRest operates in Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and others.

<i>Burger King Corporation v Hungry Jacks Pty Ltd</i> Australian court case between Burger King and Hungry Jacks

Burger King Corporation v Hungry Jack's (2001) 69 NSWLR 558 was an Australian court case decided in the New South Wales Court of Appeal on 21 June 2001, concerning a dispute between United States-based fast food chain Burger King, and its Australian franchisee Hungry Jack's. It related to the breach of a business development agreement between the two companies, and the resulting attempts of Burger King to terminate the contract. The Court of Appeal decided that Burger King could not terminate the contract, for several reasons, one of which was that it was in breach of an implied term of good faith, having taken steps to engineer the breach of the contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kout Food Group</span> Kuwaiti-based conglomerate

Kout Food Group K.S.C.C. is a Kuwaiti-based conglomerate, founded in 1982, operating in Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq, and formerly in the United Kingdom. The business also offer catering services, import and export of food related items, representation of foreign companies as well as advising others in such businesses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of KFC</span> Timeline of the history of the KFC restaurant chain

KFC was founded by Colonel Harland Sanders, an entrepreneur who began selling fried chicken from his roadside restaurant in Corbin, Kentucky, during the Great Depression. Sanders identified the potential of restaurant franchising, and the first "Kentucky Fried Chicken" franchise opened in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1952. KFC popularized chicken in the fast-food industry, diversifying the market by challenging the established dominance of the hamburger. Branding himself "Colonel Sanders", the founder became a prominent figure of American cultural history, and his image remains widely used in KFC advertising. The company's rapid expansion made it too large for Sanders to manage, so in 1964 he sold the company to a group of investors led by John Y. Brown Jr. and Jack C. Massey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collins Foods</span> Australian restaurant operation company

Collins Foods Limited is a publicly-listed Australian company focused in restaurant operations. It operates KFC and Taco Bell restaurants in Australia, Germany, and the Netherlands. It previously owned the US-based Sizzler restaurants, operated Sizzler in Australia, and franchised Sizzler in Asia. It also operated Snag Stand in Australia, and was the majority owner of Pat & Oscar's in the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EG Group</span> British retail group

EG Group is a British operator of filling stations, convenience stores and food service providers across Europe, the United States and Australia. It was founded in Blackburn in 2001 by brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa, initially as Euro Garages.

v2food Australian food company

v2food is an Australia-based producer of plant-based meat substitutes. It is a partnership between Jack Cowin's Competitive Foods Australia and CSIRO's investment fund Main Sequence Ventures. The company produces plant-based meat alternative products using protein extracted from legumes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nordic Service Partners</span> Nordic fast food franchisee

Nordic Service Partners (NSP) is the largest franchisee of Burger King in the Nordic countries as well as being a franchisee of KFC in Sweden and TGI Fridays in Denmark. The company is today one of Sweden's largest restaurant companies specialising in fast food restaurants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operations of KFC by country</span> Fast food franchise

KFC is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, one of the largest restaurant companies in the world! KFC had sales of $23 billion in 2013. KFC is incorporated under Delaware General Corporation Law, and has its headquarters at 1441 Gardiner Lane, Louisville, Kentucky, in a three-story colonial style building known colloquially as the "White House" due to its resemblance to the US president's home. The headquarters contain executive offices and the company's research and development facilities.

References

  1. ↑ Mitchell, Sue (17 December 2015). "'Hungry' Jack Cowin's recipe for success". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  2. ↑ Restaurant Business News (30 May 2003). "Burger King Re-flags Australian Stores". AllBusiness.com. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2007.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  3. ↑ Williams, Peter (29 November 2013). "Cowin sells off KFC stores for $56m". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  4. ↑ Alina Matas (11 November 1999). "Burger King Hit With Whopper ($44.6 Million) Of A Judgment". Zargo Einhorn Salkowski & Brito. P.A. Archived from the original on 29 October 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
  5. 1 2 "In Australia, Burger King to become 'Hungry Jack's'". South Florida Business Journal. 30 May 2003. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
  6. ↑ BKC press release (6 November 1998). "Burger King Corporation Announces The Opening of the Company's 10,000th Restaurant". PR Newswire . Retrieved 8 March 2008. Burger King Corporation announced today that it is opening its 10,000th restaurant in Australia on Saturday, November 7, a major milestone in the fast-food giant's development plans.
  7. 1 2 Rani Mina. "A Franchiser's Duty of Good Faith and Fair Dealing". Findlaw Australia . Retrieved 8 March 2008.
  8. 1 2 Burger King Corporation v Hungry Jack's Pty Ltd [2001] NSWCA 187 , Court of Appeal (NSW,Australia).
  9. ↑ Burger King obtained special leave to appeal to the High Court:[2002] HCATrans 180 (19 April 2002), however the appeal was later dismissed by consent: [2002] HCATrans 578 (14 November 2002).
  10. ↑ The Gale Group (9 June 2003). "Hungry Jack's to replace BK brand in Australia". Nations Restaurant News. Retrieved 8 March 2008. "Consolidation means more money for marketing and will create a powerful, single brand with an increased focus on operations excellence that should add to growth in profitability," Brad Blum, chief executive of Miami-based Burger King, said.
  11. ↑ AP Wire (13 September 2003). "Burger King slips into Hungry Jacks uniform". The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 8 March 2008. Burger King Corp's new management said on Friday it was ceding the Australian market to the Hungry Jack's brand, dissolving a convoluted relationship that at one time went to court in a franchising dispute.
  12. ↑ KFC franchisees face losing licenses DANIEL EMERSON, the West Australian
  13. ↑ Jack Cowin inspires WA franchise inquiry
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.