Bojangles'
Encyclopedia
Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits is a regional chain of fast food
restaurants based in Charlotte, North Carolina
, specializing in spicy, "Cajun
" fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits
. The restaurants, named for the song
written by Jerry Jeff Walker
, are also known for their distinctive side dishes including dirty rice
, Cajun-style pinto beans, and seasoned french fries, and specialty sweet tea.
Founded in Charlotte, North Carolina
, in 1977 by Jack Fulk
and Richard Thomas, Bojangles' grew rapidly to over 200 locations by 1984, only to see its growth rate slow in the early 1990s. The company grew substantially in recent years to over 400 locations, in 10 states, mostly in the American South (North Carolina
, South Carolina
, Georgia
, Alabama
, Arkansas
, Florida
, Tennessee
, Virginia
) and the Mid-Atlantic States of Maryland
and one location currently in Reading
, Pennsylvania
. Recently, a location opened in the food court of the historic Union Station in Washington, DC. There are also international Bojangles' locations in Honduras
. The Wall Street Journal in 2008 ranked Bojangles' as one of "25 High-Performing Franchises."
Company, in 1981. Horn and Hardart had pioneered "fast food" in another era with the use of coin operated automat
s, the last of which was located on 42nd Street in New York City and was closed in 1991. Horn and Hardart was a publicly held company and raised large amounts of capital for expansion of the Bojangles' chain.
During the time of Horn and Hardart's ownership the chain grew rapidly and expanded to 457 restaurants including 123 restaurants in Florida. Part of this growth was fueled by acquisitions including the Florida based Biskits chain. The conversion of the Biskits restaurants was unsuccessful and saddled the company with a large amount of new debt. Several events brought about a modicum of stability in the late 1980s even while many of the company's largest markets were closed. When Hurricane Hugo
struck the Carolinas, the company was able to open many of its restaurants while electricity remained off for more than a week in many areas. The massive amount of business sparked a turn-around in the company's sales that continued for many years. The company was stabilized under the leadership of CEO John Bifone, and a settlement was reached with the franchise association which had threatened the company.
In 1990, Horn and Hardart sold most of its interest to Sienna Partners and Interwest Partners, which were managed by a group of young California venture capitalists based in Silicon Valley
. The company was then headed by former KFC
executive, Dick Campbell. After modest investment in facilities, training and operations, the company began a slow and steady improvement that lasted throughout most of the 1990s. In 1994 the company attempted a public offering which collapsed before completion based upon a "softening" of the performance and over-expansion of company units and franchisee acquisitions. Dick Campbell was replaced by CEO Jim Peterson. Again the company stabilized and improved its performance, eventually selling to a group of investors headed by former Wendy's executive Joe Drury and financed by FMAC in 1998.
Bojangles' was purchased one more time in 2007 by Falfurrias Capital Partners, a private equity firm. The investment group includes Hugh L. McColl Jr.
, founder and chairman of Falfurrias Capital Partners and former chairman and chief executive of Bank of America
, and Jerry Richardson
, founder and president of the NFL Carolina Panthers
.
Quick serve restaurant veteran Randy Kibler was named CEO of the company in 2007. Kibler started his career in 1970 at a Spartan Foods-owned Hardee's
location in Columbia, S.C. Working his way up the ranks, Kibler later worked at Flagstar Cos. Inc., where he served as senior vice president and then president and chief operating officer of the 600-restaurant Hardee’s division, as well as president and chief operating officer of Quincy’s Family Steakhouse and vice president of the western division of Denny's
. Starting in 2002, Kibler was a partner in companies that served as developers and area representatives for Firehouse Restaurant Group Inc., the franchisor of Firehouse Subs
. Kibler has focused on Bojangles' Cajun spiced chicken, buttermilk biscuits and iced tea menu items.
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
restaurants based in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
, specializing in spicy, "Cajun
Cajun
Cajuns are an ethnic group mainly living in the U.S. state of Louisiana, consisting of the descendants of Acadian exiles...
" fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits
Biscuit (bread)
A biscuit in the United States, and widely used in popular American English, is a small bread made with baking powder or baking soda as a chemical leavening agent rather than yeast....
. The restaurants, named for the song
Mr. Bojangles (song)
Mr. Bojangles is the title of a song originally written and recorded by American country music artist Jerry Jeff Walker for his 1968 album of the same title...
written by Jerry Jeff Walker
Jerry Jeff Walker
Jerry Jeff Walker is an American country music singer and songwriter. He is probably most famous for writing the song "Mr. Bojangles.-Biography:...
, are also known for their distinctive side dishes including dirty rice
Dirty rice
Dirty rice is a traditional Cajun dish made from white rice cooked with small pieces of chicken liver or giblets, which give it a dark color and a mild but distinctive flavor. Similar to a pilaf, it also includes green bell pepper, celery and onion . Parsley and/or chopped green onions are common...
, Cajun-style pinto beans, and seasoned french fries, and specialty sweet tea.
Founded in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
, in 1977 by Jack Fulk
Jack Fulk
Jack Z. Fulk was an American businessman who co-founded the Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits fast food restaurant chain in 1977 in Charlotte, North Carolina....
and Richard Thomas, Bojangles' grew rapidly to over 200 locations by 1984, only to see its growth rate slow in the early 1990s. The company grew substantially in recent years to over 400 locations, in 10 states, mostly in the American South (North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
) and the Mid-Atlantic States of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and one location currently in Reading
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city in southeastern Pennsylvania, USA, and seat of Berks County. Reading is the principal city of the Greater Reading Area and had a population of 88,082 as of the 2010 census, making it the fifth most populated city in the state after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown and Erie,...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. Recently, a location opened in the food court of the historic Union Station in Washington, DC. There are also international Bojangles' locations in Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
. The Wall Street Journal in 2008 ranked Bojangles' as one of "25 High-Performing Franchises."
History
Jack Fulk sold the Bojangles' concept to the now defunct New York company, The Horn & HardartHorn & Hardart
Horn & Hardart was a food services company of the USA noted for operating the first food service automats in Philadelphia and New York City.Philadelphia's Joseph Horn and German-born, New Orleans-raised, Frank Hardart opened their first restaurant together in Philadelphia on December 22, 1888...
Company, in 1981. Horn and Hardart had pioneered "fast food" in another era with the use of coin operated automat
Automat
An automat is a fast food restaurant where simple foods and drink are served by coin-operated and bill-operated vending machines.-Concept:Originally, the machines took only nickels...
s, the last of which was located on 42nd Street in New York City and was closed in 1991. Horn and Hardart was a publicly held company and raised large amounts of capital for expansion of the Bojangles' chain.
During the time of Horn and Hardart's ownership the chain grew rapidly and expanded to 457 restaurants including 123 restaurants in Florida. Part of this growth was fueled by acquisitions including the Florida based Biskits chain. The conversion of the Biskits restaurants was unsuccessful and saddled the company with a large amount of new debt. Several events brought about a modicum of stability in the late 1980s even while many of the company's largest markets were closed. When Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo was a classical, destructive and rare Cape Verde-type hurricane which struck the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe, Montserrat, St. Croix, Puerto Rico and the USA mainland in South Carolina as a Category 4 hurricane during September of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season...
struck the Carolinas, the company was able to open many of its restaurants while electricity remained off for more than a week in many areas. The massive amount of business sparked a turn-around in the company's sales that continued for many years. The company was stabilized under the leadership of CEO John Bifone, and a settlement was reached with the franchise association which had threatened the company.
In 1990, Horn and Hardart sold most of its interest to Sienna Partners and Interwest Partners, which were managed by a group of young California venture capitalists based in Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
. The company was then headed by former KFC
KFC
KFC, founded and also known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, is a chain of fast food restaurants based in Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States. KFC has been a brand and operating segment, termed a concept of Yum! Brands since 1997 when that company was spun off from PepsiCo as Tricon Global...
executive, Dick Campbell. After modest investment in facilities, training and operations, the company began a slow and steady improvement that lasted throughout most of the 1990s. In 1994 the company attempted a public offering which collapsed before completion based upon a "softening" of the performance and over-expansion of company units and franchisee acquisitions. Dick Campbell was replaced by CEO Jim Peterson. Again the company stabilized and improved its performance, eventually selling to a group of investors headed by former Wendy's executive Joe Drury and financed by FMAC in 1998.
Bojangles' was purchased one more time in 2007 by Falfurrias Capital Partners, a private equity firm. The investment group includes Hugh L. McColl Jr.
Hugh McColl
Hugh L. McColl Jr. is a fourth-generation banker and the former Chairman and CEO of Bank of America. McColl was a driving force behind consolidating a series of progressively larger, mostly Southern banks, thrifts and financial institutions into a super-regional banking force, "the first...
, founder and chairman of Falfurrias Capital Partners and former chairman and chief executive of Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
, and Jerry Richardson
Jerry Richardson
Jerry Richardson is the current majority owner and founder of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League.-Biography:...
, founder and president of the NFL Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
.
Quick serve restaurant veteran Randy Kibler was named CEO of the company in 2007. Kibler started his career in 1970 at a Spartan Foods-owned Hardee's
Hardee's
Hardee's is a restaurant chain, located mostly in the Southeast and Midwestern regions of the United States. It has evolved through several corporate ownerships since its establishment in 1960. It is currently owned and operated by CKE Restaurants. Along with its sibling restaurant chain, Carl's...
location in Columbia, S.C. Working his way up the ranks, Kibler later worked at Flagstar Cos. Inc., where he served as senior vice president and then president and chief operating officer of the 600-restaurant Hardee’s division, as well as president and chief operating officer of Quincy’s Family Steakhouse and vice president of the western division of Denny's
Denny's
Denny's is a full-service coffee shop/family restaurant chain. It operates over 1,500 restaurants in the United States , Canada, Curaçao, Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Japan , Mexico, New Zealand, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.Denny's is known for always being...
. Starting in 2002, Kibler was a partner in companies that served as developers and area representatives for Firehouse Restaurant Group Inc., the franchisor of Firehouse Subs
Firehouse Subs
Firehouse Subs, is a US-based, fast casual restaurant chain that specializes in hot subs. Founded in 1994 in Jacksonville, Florida by former firefighter brothers Robin and Chris Sorensen, Firehouse Subs serves sandwiches with meats and cheeses, "steamed" hot and placed on produce on a toasted sub...
. Kibler has focused on Bojangles' Cajun spiced chicken, buttermilk biscuits and iced tea menu items.