Red Rooster

Red Rooster is one of Australia's largest fast food restaurant chains. Red Rooster specialises in selling roasted chicken and other related products.

History

The Kailis family opened the first Red Rooster store in the Perth suburb of Kelmscott, Western Australia in 1972. Myer purchased the business in July 1981. In 1992, Red Rooster bought the Big Rooster chain to expand into the eastern states. These stores were re-branded as Red Rooster. In May 2002, after several years of being owned by Coles Group (previously known as Coles Myer), Red Rooster was purchased by Western Australian company Australian Fast Foods Pty Limited^[2], who owned the competing Chicken Treat fast food chain. Currently there are over 360 Red Rooster stores in Australia represented in all states and territories of Australia except Tasmania.

In April 2007, Red Rooster and Chicken Treat were sold by Australian Fast Foods for $180 million AUD to a consortium formed by the management and the venture capital arm of Westpac known as Quadrant Capital^[3]

Menu

Until the late 1990s the stores were only open from lunchtime until about 9pm. Since then they have extended trading hours and started to produce a breakfast menu in response to McDonald's breakfasts. They have also begun selling low-fat and lower-salt products in response to consumer demand for 'healthy' meals.

Red Rooster chicken is generally served as a full portion of chicken, either 1/2 or 1/4 chicken, rather than individual pieces, though it is available. Chips are usually served with the 1/4 and 1/2 chickens as a Classic meal, Red Rooster serves chips in a special seasoning.

In 2007, Red Rooster introduced a new product line of fish and chips and fish related products^[4], the most recent of which being squid and prawns.

In addition to its chicken and seafood Red Rooster also serves grilled chicken (previously Portuguese style cuts of chicken, currently it serves garlic pepper splits (chicken skewers) and smoky chilli tenders (plain chicken strips in a sauce) which are grilled and then either eaten on their own, with chips, salad, in a baguette or wrapped in a tortilla) as well as "wraps" (either grilled chicken with salad mix (lettuce and carrot), onions, and tomato with a sour cream glaze, this is also available in a baguette, a Flayva which is mild spicy chicken strips with summer sauce, cheese, lettuce, and tomato) baguette (a BLT (bacon lettuce tomato, with grilled chicken) or a strip sub, now renamed to the rippa sub, which has mild spicy strips, with the choice of classic summer sauce, tandoori Indian style mayonnaise or spicy salsa sauce and lettuce) or burgers, these can be a fillet burger which has a fillet, lettuce, tomato and cheese with mayonnaise, a real bacon burger which omits the mayonnaise and tomato for barbecue sauce and 'steak style' bacon or a cheese burger which has a special smaller patty, tomato sauce and cheese.

Marketing and Promotions

Over the years Red Rooster has utilised various slogans and campaigns but they mainly focus on the name "Red Rooster" or at least the word "Red". A popular jingle of the 80's and early 90's used the words "Are you Red Red, Ready Red Rooster".

Presently they are using the "it's gotta be red" type slogan and campaign, where Tom Gleeson (an Australian comedian) asks Americans where a Red Rooster can be found, (the ad mostly shows Americans confused about the concept of 'roast' chicken), along with other Austalianisms such as mentioning the word "Ute".

See also

• Oporto - An Australian-based Portuguese themed restaurant

References

http://www.insideretailing.com.au/Default.aspx?tabid=53&articleType=ArticleView&articleId=867

External links

• Official Red Rooster Website
• Official Red Rooster Catering Website
• Red Rooster Nutritional Information from CalorieKing (an independent site)