Around 1,000 KFC restaurants in the country will be rebranded (Picture: EPA)
The Colonel’s famous fried chicken will soon become a forgotten relic in Russia after KFC finalised its plans to pull out of the country.
Yum! Brands, which owns the US fast food giant, is selling its restaurants and franchise rights – covering around 1,000 branches – to local businessmen.
The restaurants will now be renamed ‘Rostic’s’, according to local media, and won’t be allowed to use any KFC branding.
It’s believed they will lose access to its so-called ‘secret’ blend of 11 herbs and spices, although it’s not clear whether they can stop managers trying to recreate it from memory.
McDonald’s, which exited Russia in May, has successfully stopped the new owners of its branches from recreating any of its branding, but they have been widely described as a knock-off.
The new chain is serving a near-identical menu using what it claims to be the same ingredients and recipes.
It has nonetheless been plagued with complaints about french fry shortages, mouldy burgers and out-of-date condiments, as well as the notable disappearance of the Big Mac.
The vast majority of Russian KFC restaurants are managed by independent owners under franchise agreements, with around 70 directly owned by Yum! Brands.
Little is known about the buyers, Konstantin Yurievich Kotov and Andrey Eduardovich Oskolkov, other than that they are existing KFC franchisees.
They have agreed to retain all existing employees and carry out the rebranding ‘gradually’.
Yum! Brands, who also own Pizza Hut, vowed to pull both brands out of Russia in July amid an exodus of multinational firms in the wake of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The company suspended all development of its Russian business and pledged to redirect profits from the restaurants to humanitarian organisations while it found a buyer.
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The new owners are likely to try and recreate the Colonel’s ‘secret’ blend of herbs and spices from memory.
