For over a decade, One Million Moms and our parent ministry, the American Family Association, have urged CKE Restaurants to keep commercials clean and family-friendly. If their food is as good as they claim then there is no need to use sex to sell their burgers. It all started with an ad starring Paris Hilton twelve years ago! After many, many action alerts, 1MM decided to launch the "Stop Hardee's and Carl's Jr. Sexually Charged Ads" petition urging these restaurants, both owned by CKE Restaurants, to immediately discontinue offensive commercials. 1MM was hopeful this would get their attention. 1MM supporters professionally but sternly let CKE know we were not giving up on protecting our families.
Carl's Jr. and Hardee’s is re-steering its marketing to focus on food — a u-turn from its racy and offensive ads. Praise the Lord! Our voice has been heard. It is about time! 1MM was consistent and our diligence has paid off.
Conservative families have avoided their restaurants for years primarily because of the company’s ads and the soft porn CKE was producing. It appears Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s have finally listened to our concerns and are making a drastic change to their advertising strategy.
The ads, which featured scantily-cald models and celebrities in the past, are being replaced by a new campaign that pokes fun at the formerly sexually-charged spots. The move, an attempt to appeal to a wider consumer base that cares more about food quality, comes just weeks after former CKE CEO Andy Puzder announced he will retire in April.
It’s not just the commercials that are changing, though. The chain is also remodeling its yellow star logo, which will see the removal of the happy face in the middle, with the red and white lettering switched to black for a more modern look.
CKE announced the official launch of its new advertising direction and brand, beginning with declaring their rightful status as “Pioneers of the Great American Burger;” the title will also serve as the company’s new ad tagline.
The marketing department is overhauling CKE’s entire image, and we should thank CKE to encourage the company to follow through with their decision. Hopefully, CKE’s disgusting and raunchy commercials are a thing of the past. 1MM will be watching to see if they have, in fact, dropped their sensual ads; but this is definitely a step in the right direction.
It appears Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s ads will focus on the quality of their food rather than bikini-clad & barely dressed girls. Let’s thank the CKE Restaurant to encourage them to follow through with this decision and for listening to customer’s concerns. Please click on link to sign our “Thank You Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s” petition now!
Blessings,
Monica Cole
Director, OneMillionMoms.com
