Big Rooster
 | |
| Industry | Fast food restaurants |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1987 |
Area served | Papua New Guinea |
| Products | Roast chicken |
| Website | bigrooster |
Big Rooster is a Papua New Guinean fast food chain which specialises in roast chicken. The company began operations in 1987.[1] As of 1992, it was part of a Queensland-based Australian chain of the same name which had four stores in Papua New Guinea. That year the chain was purchased by Coles Myer and its Australian operations were rebranded to become part of the Red Rooster chain.[2]
As of July 2017, Big Rooster had 20 stores across Papua New Guinea.[3]
History
Around 1975 or 1977, best friends and business partners Nick Tana and Steve Fyfe started Big Rooster in Queensland, Australia.[4][5][6] The fast food chain became a family-favourite in the state during the 80s. Its slogan was "What's the time? It's Big Rooster time!", and television advertisements featured the jingle "I'd rather have a sunny day and I'd rather have Big Rooster, I'd rather live the Queensland way and I'd rather have Big Rooster".[5] Under the name Chicken World, Big Rooster also had locations in Western Australia.[6]
When Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) opened in Sydney in 1968, it spearheaded American fast food's introduction into Australia.[7] However, its growth in Australia was curtailed by the swift development of Queensland's Big Rooster and the Western Australian–based Red Rooster, which both specialised in roast chicken. After KFC, Big Rooster was the second-most popular chicken chain in the country. In February 1984, it had $160 million (17%) in retail sales.[6]
In 1988, Big Rooster and smaller competitor Chicken Treat merged into one company, Australian Fast Foods (AFF). AFF was run by Tana and Chicken Treat's Frank Romano.[4] In 1992, Coles Myer, which owned Red Rooster, bought AFF for AUS$20 million. The deal included Big Rooster's 92 locations in Queensland, as well as six stores in the Northern Territory and overseas in Papua New Guinea.[4]
Coles Myer converted Big Rooster's Australian locations into Red Rooster, erasing the chain from Australia. However, the chain continues to operate in Papua New Guinea.[4]
References
- ^ Albaniel, Rosalyn (21 July 2017). "Big Rooster Gives Customers Satisfaction". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
- ^ "Coles takes over fast-food chicken chain". The Canberra Times. 10 July 1992. p. 13. Retrieved 10 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Big Rooster Opens Another Outlet". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
- ^ a b c d Gome, Amanda (5 August 2004). "Too many cooks". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ a b Patterson, Natalie (8 February 2024). "Sizzler, Pizza Haven, Big Rooster: Queensland's favourite restaurant chains of yesteryear". The Morning Bulletin. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024.
- ^ a b c Meagher, Michael (28 February 1984). "KENTUCKY FRIED'S CHICKENS COME HOME TO ROOST". The Bulletin. Vol. 104, no. 5405. p. 86 – via Trove.
- ^ Murray, Andrew (2018). "A faster taste: Red Rooster and the architecture of Australian fast food" (PDF). Historic Environment. 30 (2): 101–102.