5/5 Marwan A. 6 years ago on Google • 1384 reviews
Burger
King
(BK)
is
an
American
global
chain
of
hamburger
fast
food
restaurants.
Headquartered
in
the
unincorporated
area
of
Miami-Dade
County,
Florida,
the
company
was
founded
in
1953
as
InstaBurger
King,
a
Jacksonville,
Florida-based
restaurant
chain.
After
Insta-Burger
King
ran
into
financial
difficulties
in
1954,
its
two
Miami-based
franchisees
David
Edgerton
and
James
McLamore
purchased
the
company
and
renamed
it
"Burger
King".
Over
the
next
half-century,
the
company
would
change
hands
four
times,
with
its
third
set
of
owners,
a
partnership
of
TPG
Capital,
Bain
Capital,
and
Goldman
Sachs
Capital
Partners,
taking
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
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.
The
1970s
were
the
"Golden
Age"
of
the
company's
advertising,
but
beginning
in
the
early-1980s,
Burger
King
advertising
began
losing
focus.
A
series
of
less
successful
advertising
campaigns
created
by
a
procession
of
advertising
agencies
continued
for
the
next
two
decades.
In
2003,
Burger
King
hired
the
Miami-based
advertising
agency
Crispin
Porter
+
Bogusky
(CP+B),
who
completely
reorganized
its
advertising
with
a
series
of
new
campaigns
centered
on
a
redesigned
Burger
King
character
nicknamed
"The
King",
accompanied
by
a
new
online
presence.
While
highly
successful,
some
of
CP+B's
commercials
were
derided
for
perceived
sexism
or
cultural
insensitivity.
Burger
King's
new
owner,
3G
Capital,
later
terminated
the
relationship
with
CP+B
in
2011
and
moved
its
advertising
to
McGarryBowen,
to
begin
a
new
product-oriented
campaign
with
expanded
demographic
targeting.
Burger
King's
menu
has
expanded
from
a
basic
offering
of
burgers,
French
fries,
sodas,
and
milkshakes
to
a
larger
and
more
diverse
set
of
products.
In
1957,
the
"Whopper"
became
the
first
major
addition
to
the
menu,
and
it
has
become
Burger
King's
signature
product
since.
Conversely,
BK
has
introduced
many
products,
which
failed
to
catch
hold
in
the
marketplace.
Some
of
these
failures
in
the
United
States
have
seen
success
in
foreign
markets,
where
BK
has
also
tailored
its
menu
for
regional
tastes.
From
2002
to
2010,
Burger
King
aggressively
targeted
the
18–34
male
demographic
with
larger
products
that
often
carried
correspondingly
large
amounts
of
unhealthy
fats
and
trans-fats.
This
tactic
would
eventually
damage
the
company's
financial
underpinnings,
and
cast
a
negative
pall
on
its
earnings.
Beginning
in
2011,
the
company
began
to
move
away
from
its
previous
male-oriented
menu
and
introduce
new
menu
items,
product
reformulations
and
packaging,
as
part
of
its
current
owner
3G
Capital's
restructuring
plans
of
the
company.
As
of
December
31,
2016,
Burger
King
reported
it
had
15,738
outlets
in
100
countries.
Of
these,
47.5%
are
in
the
United
States
and
99.5%
are
privately
owned
and
operated,
with
its
new
owners
moving
to
an
almost
entirely
franchised
model
in
2013.
BK
has
historically
used
several
variations
of
franchising
to
expand
its
operations.
The
manner
in
which
the
company
licenses
its
franchisees
varies
depending
on
the
region,
with
some
regional
franchises,
known
as
master
franchises,
responsible
for
selling
franchise
sub-licenses
on
the
company's
behalf.
Burger
King's
relationship
with
its
franchises
has
not
always
been
harmonious.
Occasional
spats
between
the
two
have
caused
numerous
issues,
and
in
several
instances,
the
company's
and
its
licensees'
relations
have
degenerated
into
precedent-setting
court
cases.
Burger
King's
Australian
franchise
Hungry
Jack's
is
the
only
franchise
to
operate
under
a
different
name,
due
to
a
trademark
dispute
and
a
series
of
legal
cases
between
the
two.
