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Burger King Corp. Franchise Receives 2009 Retail Store of the Year Award for WHOPPER(TM) Bar

By: Burger King |  4 Shares     113 Reads

MIAMI (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Burger King Corp. (NYSE:BKC) today announced it has received Chain Store Age magazine's 2009 Retail Store of the Year Award for the brand's premium, customizable restaurant experience at the WHOPPER(TM) Bar.

"We are honored to receive such a prestigious award for the WHOPPER(TM) Bar, which was designed to leverage the BURGER KING(R) brand's strengths and deliver a memorable dining experience the moment our restaurant guests walk through the door," said Jonathan Muhtar, vice president, product marketing, Burger King Corp. "The contemporary design and new logo emphasize our signature flame-broiling and perfectly complements our vision for this restaurant's unique menu."

The WHOPPER(TM) Bar was chosen over many entries from around the world in the casual dining segment of Chain Store Age's 28th annual design competition.

"Winners were selected based on how the store design lives up to its stated goals and objectives, as well as design innovation and use of materials," said Marianne Wilson, editor-in-chief of Chain Store Age. "Judges were impressed by how the WHOPPER(TM) Bar's design reflected the BURGER KING(R) brand's positioning and appealed to its target audience."

WHOPPER(TM) Bar

Capitalizing on America's Favorite Burger*, the WHOPPER(TM) Bar is a new dining experience for the BURGER KING(R) brand. The restaurant has a crisp, modern, bar-like look and feel that utilizes the WHOPPER(R) sandwich's flame-broiled platform as inspiration, creating a hip, sophisticated atmosphere. The WHOPPER(TM) Bar showcases a red, black and gray color scheme with a curved front counter featuring black and metal finishes. Burger King Corp. worked closely with a group of design experts at Interbrand Design Forum, who were able to capture the essence of the brand's flame-freshness and bring it to life through décor, uniforms, packaging and menu boards.

Crew uniforms were transformed to exude a more contemporary cut that matches the restaurant's bold new approach. Additionally, Burger King Corp. and marketing agency Wunderman redesigned the product packaging, serving sandwiches in an upgraded, carton-like box -- a necessity when it comes to holding as many additional toppings as guests wish to add. Animated LCD menu boards prominently display signature WHOPPER(R) sandwich builds and other featured products.

Burger-lovers may select from a WHOPPER(R) sandwich, DOUBLE WHOPPER(R) sandwich or Steakhouse XT(TM) -- a casual dining quality burger that boasts an extra-thick patty -- and then choose from 22 different WHOPPER(R) sandwich toppings "fit for a King." Expert "WHOPPER(R)-istas" build burgers to order from the WHOPPER(R) Topper, a visible toppings theater showcasing two tiers of more than 20 fresh toppings and a wide variety of sauces, such as A.I.(R) Thick & Hearty steak sauce, pepper bacon, guacamole and crispy onions. Guests looking for a little guidance can opt for "Bar Favorites," which include both new and familiar sandwiches, like the Bourbon WHOPPER(R) sandwich, Three-Cheese Steakhouse XT(TM) and Pepper Bacon Steakhouse XT(TM) burgers.

* Based on a September 2009 nationwide preference survey of adults.

WHOPPER(TM) Bars Around the World

Since the contemporary, flexible-footprint WHOPPER(TM) Bar restaurant concept was first introduced in March 2008, WHOPPER(TM) Bars have opened in every BK(R)-operated region across the globe. The world's first WHOPPER(TM) Bar opened its doors in March 2009 at Universal CityWalk(R) at Universal Orlando(R) Resort, followed by the opening of others in Singapore in September 2009, Venezuela in November 2009, and Málaga, Spain in March 2010.

Burger King Corp. continues to strategically target carefully-selected, high-traffic destinations for future WHOPPER(TM) Bar locations in potential cities such as New York City, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Consumers can expect to see WHOPPER(TM) Bars in high-profile venues like sports arenas, airports and other tourist destinations.

"One of the advantages of the WHOPPER(TM) Bar is the flexibility we have with the restaurant footprint. We can customize the layout and work with our development team and franchisees on an individual basis to determine which design will best accommodate a given location," said Hector Muñoz, senior director, retail image and engagement. "The WHOPPER(TM) Bar particularly gives us the most flexibility when it comes to captive and high pedestrian traffic locations."

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements made in this press release that reflect management's expectations regarding future events are forward-looking in nature, including statements regarding the Company's expectations regarding the WHOPPER(TM) Bar supporting our development strategy and the Company's ability to capitalize on its strategy to open WHOPPER(TM) Bar locations in high-traffic destinations and high-profile venues. These forward-looking statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. Important factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, including those risk factors set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the following: (i) our ability to compete in an intensely competitive industry; (ii) our ability to successfully implement our growth strategy with respect to WHOPPER(TM) Bar restaurants; and (iii) risks related to our operations.

Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results. Moreover, neither we nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We do not undertake any responsibility to update any of these forward-looking statements to conform our prior statements to actual results or revised expectations.

ABOUT BURGER KING CORPORATION

The BURGER KING(R) system operates more than 12,000 restaurants in all 50 states and in 73 countries and U.S. territories worldwide. Approximately 90 percent of BURGER KING(R) restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees, many of them family-owned operations that have been in business for decades. In 2008, Fortune magazine ranked Burger King Corp. (BKC) among America's 1,000 largest corporations and in 2010, Standard & Poor's included shares of Burger King Holdings, Inc. in the S&P MidCap 400 index. BKC was recently recognized by Interbrand on its top 100 "Best Global Brands" list and Ad Week has named it one of the top three industry-changing advertisers within the last three decades.

ABOUT INTERBRAND DESIGN FORUM

Since 1978, we have been creating retail brand experiences for companies around the world. Interbrand Design Forum's talent for game-changing innovation led us to create a business model that integrates analytics-based strategy -- the first and only company with such a comprehensive offering. In 2008, we added Interbrand to our Design Forum name to reflect our place in the world's largest branding consultancy. We have been part of Interbrand since 2002, which makes us part of a network of 1,200 associates in almost 40 offices around the globe.

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