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ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. With the sale of its remaining 184 corporate Roy Rogers units to burger giant McDonald's Corp., Hardee's Food Systems effectively has sent a once-thriving regional chain riding into the sunset.
The fate of the brand is now in the hands of a dwindling number of franchisees operating a total of about 152 units sprinkled through the Northeast, including some 48 units in highway travel plazas and 15 in New York City.
"In the fast-food segment, that's a very small number of units, and it makes it extremely hard for them to maintain any identity. For all practical purposes Roy Rogers will cease to exist over a period of time," said Steven Rockwell, who tracks the restaurant industry for Alex. Brown & Sons, Baltimore.
Peter McBride, a spokesman for Imasco Limited, Hardee's Montreal-based corporate parent, said Hardee's would continue to honor agreements with Roy Rogers franchisees.
The McDonald's deal, valued by the companies at $74 million, represents what may be its biggest acquisition of another chain on U.S. soil. Recently, McDonald's, which is on its most aggressive unitgrowth path in its history, announced its intent to buy 80 units of Burghy, a fast-food chain in Italy.
"This is just part of the company's...