KFC, the fast food chain previously known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, has come in for some heat after announcing plans to move its corporate headquarters from the state after which it is named to Texas.
The chain’s parent company, Yum! Brands, told investors it would move about 100 employees from its office in Louisville, Kentucky, more than 800 miles south-west to the city of Plano in Texas, where the group’s Pizza Hut chain is headquartered.
The employees are expected to move in the next six months and will receive relocation support. An extra 90 remote workers will be expected to move to Texas or other Yum! Brands’ corporate offices during the coming 18 months.
The governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear, said in statement: “I am disappointed by this decision and believe the company’s founder would be, too. “This company’s name starts with Kentucky, and it has marketed our state’s heritage and culture in the sale of its product.”
The mayor of Louisville, Craig Greenberg, also expressed his disappointment, US media reported, saying the brand “was born here and is synonymous with Kentucky”.
Yum! Brands said its “strategic decision”would allow it to “foster greater collaboration among brands and employees”.
Once the move from Kentucky is complete, Yum! Brands will have two corporate headquarters, in Texas and in California, where its brands Taco Bell and Habit Burger & Grill are based.
David Gibbs, Yum! Brands’ chief executive officer, said: “These changes position us for sustainable growth and will help us better serve our customers, employees, franchisees and shareholders. Ultimately, bringing more of our people together on a consistent basis will maximise our unrivalled culture and talent as a competitive advantage.”
Yum! Brands said it and the KFC Foundation would retain corporate offices in Louisville.
Several companies have moved to Texas from other states in recent years, attracted by its low corporate taxes.
Elon Musk moved Tesla’s corporate headquarters from Palo Alto in California to the Texas city of Austin in 2021, after criticising California’s regulations and taxes. The billionaire also moved the state of incorporation of the rocket company SpaceX to Texas from Delaware in 2024, after a Delaware judge ruled against his pay package.
The corporate move takes KFC away from its home state, where its founder, “Colonel” Harland Sanders – whose face is still immortalised on the brand’s logo – began selling fried chicken from a roadside restaurant outside the city of Corbin in 1932.
Sanders believed in restaurant franchises, and took his “finger lickin” secret blend of 11 herbs and spices to Salt Lake City, Utah, where he opened the first franchise location in 1952.
KFC is now sold at more than 30,000 restaurants in at least 145 countries and territories.
KFC fans shared their views of the planned move on social media, with some joking that the company could be rebranded as Texas Fried Chicken.
