Yum! Brands Company History Timeline

1997

Yum! Brands was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Louisville, KY.“

1998

Tricon selected Louisville as its headquarters, near the KFC Restaurant Support Center from the Pepsi HQ in Purchase, New York, by early 1998.

1999

In September 1999, A&W announced intentions to acquire Long John Silver’s out of bankruptcy, as a result a new company called Yorkshire Global Restaurants was formed.

Tricon was also pushed to shelve its successful advertising campaign featuring a talking Chihuahua in 1999 after Taco Bell franchisees demanded that future commercials tout the company's fresh food.

2000

Ameriserve Food Distribution Inc., its main supplier, declared bankruptcy in January 2000.

A court ruled in favor of Pizza Hut in 2000.

In 2000, Tricon Global tested multi-branded locations with Yorkshire Global Restaurants.

2001

In 2001, KFC started test restaurants in Austin, Texas, called "Wing Works", a chicken wing line sold with one of a few flavored sauces.

2002

Stock Advisor launched in February of 2002.

Yorkshire in March 2002 announced it would merge with Tricon Global Restaurants to form Yum! Brands.

The merger was finalized on May 8, 2002, and the name change became effective on May 22, 2002 On June 6, 2002, Yum! executed a two-for-one stock split.

KFC had become China's leading brand, opening the country's first drive-thru in Beijing in 2002.

2003

In June 2003, chairman and CEO David Novak became the target of a demonstration held by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in Germany.

A Great American Brand LLC will buy A&W, and LJS will be acquired by LJS Partners LLC. Yum! Brands had originally purchased the parent company of Long John Silver’s and A&W brands in 2003 for $320 million.

In 2003, Yum! launched WingStreet as a hybrid combo unit with an existing Pizza Hut franchise.

2004

An East Dawning test cafeteria-style restaurant was opened in Shanghai in 2004.

2009

On October 19, 2009, Company president Scott Bergren publicized WingStreet's national launch.

2011

In January 2011, Yum! announced its intentions to divest itself of its Long John Silver's and A&W brands to focus on its core brands of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.

In May 2011, Yum! agreed to purchase Chinese hot pot chain Little Sheep for HK$4.56 billion.

2012

China's the recovery market due to poultry scandalKFC ended 2012 with same-store sales growth of 3% in China.

In late 2012, Chinese officials revealed an investigation into KFC's chicken suppliers because of concerns with the level of antibiotics in the meat.

In 2012, a KFC opened in Ramallah and became the first American fast food restaurant to operate in the West Bank; a Pizza Hut is also planned.

2013

In 2013, a few KFC locations in China supplied chicken found to contain "excess levels of chemical residue". Yum! had lost 6% of sales from publicity in China as of January 25, 2013.

The company opened its first restaurant in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in May 2013.

2015

The sole KFC Eleven was closed in April 2015.

Super Chix was sold to founder Nick Ouimet and an investment group in August 2015.

In the first quarter of 2015, Third Point Management and Corvex Management separately acquired an unspecified stake in the company.

2016

In 2016 Yum China Holdings, Inc. was established and separated from Yum! Brands.

2017

In 2017, Yum! announced plans to open 10 Pizza Hut restaurants in Ethiopia, after signing a franchise with the country's Belayab Foods and Franchise PLC.

2018

With companies like Grubhub, DoorDash, and Uber Eats entering the food delivery arena over the past decade, Yum! Brands decided to invest $200 million into Grubhub and sign an exclusive partnership in 2018 for KFC and Taco Bell.

2019

In 2019, Yum! Brands was named to the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index and ranked among the top 100 Best Corporate Citizens by Corporate Responsibility Magazine amongst other highly successful corporations such as Apple.

2020

Chief Executive Officer, Russell W. Bendel, agreed to be purchased by Yum! Brands in January 2020.

The sale was expected to be around $375 million and closed in March 2020.

2021

In September 2021, Yum! completed the acquisition of Australian kitchen order management and delivery technology company Dragontail Systems for US$69.1 million in cash.

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Founded
1997
Company Founded
Headquarters
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Founders
Andrall Pearson
Company Founders
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How Old Is Yum! Brands?

Yum! Brands is 26 years old.

Who Is The Founder Of Yum! Brands?

Andrall Pearson founded Yum! Brands.

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Yum! Brands may also be known as or be related to Tricon Global Restaurants (1997–2002), Yum Brands, Inc, Yum! Brands, Yum! Brands Inc, Yum! Brands, Inc. and kfc.