Colonel Sanders is a household name worldwide, with his recognition widely intact as an icon of the multi-billion-dollar fast food industry. The fast-food tycoon lacks no introduction, thanks to his 'finger-lickin' chicken. However, things were not as easy, and Sanders had to go through a very topsy-turvy ride to become what he is today. Born in Indiana on September 9, 1890, Sanders started to learn cooking following his father’s death. Sanders was just six at that time. A dropout from school, he got enlisted in but was discharged from the US Army before he turned 17.
Sanders's First Job
Interestingly, Sanders got his first job that expected him to empty the ash pans from the engines—in Alabama. Later, he became a fireman on the route between Jasper and Sheffield. Meanwhile, over charges of insubordination, he got fired.
Ultimately, he launched his startup at the age of 30, which was a ferry boat service over the Ohio River. But the construction of a bridge rendered his services redundant.
Later, Sanders took charge of a Standard Oil gas station in Kentucky’s Nicholasville, which was closed in 1930 due to the great depression. In the same year, he opened his second service station, where he started to sell homemade chicken to truck drivers. This ensured Sanders got some extra cash.
Tumultuous Ride During World War 2
Sanders’ business was in for a tumultuous ride during the years of World War 2, which even saw his Sanders Court and Café burned down in November 1939.
He rebuilt the restaurant and adopted a new technique to speed up cooking, which was to pressure-fry his chicken.
In 1956, when he was in his sixties, Sanders hit the road to hunt for franchisees. He decided to sell his secret, patented pressure-cooking technique along with the spice blend. The decision just took off, drawing 5 cent for every bird the restaurants sold.
First Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise
In 1952, he got his very first Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise in Salt Lake City, Utah, marking the start of the brand’s journey.
Later, Colonel Sanders chose to hand over the reins as he decided to sell the company to a group of investors for USD 2 million. By 1970, Kentucky Fried Chicken - rebranded as KFC - had expanded to 3,000 outlets across 48 countries.
Cut to 1963, Sanders, at the age of 66, had businesses in almost 600 locations, including overseas franchises in countries like the UK, Canada, Jamaica, and Mexico. In today’s time, there are 20,000 KFC outlets across 118 countries.
