Iran says copycat KFC closed over logo

Following the closure of a copycat Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) restaurant in Iran by the police earlier this week, officials in Tehran say the use of American signs and symbols had prompted the decision.

The restaurant – KFC Halal – that introduced itself on its website as an official Iran branch of the American fast food chain was shut down by the police only a day after it opened in western Tehran.

Ali Fazeli, the president of Guilds Chamber of Iran, has been quoted by the media that KFC Halal Iranian was a registered brand that had been established through local investments and had no connections to the KFC in the US.

“However, this restaurant had used the logo and symbols that resembled those of the American KFC in order to guarantee high sales,” Fazeli has told the media. “This is a violation of the laws,” he added.

Abbas Pazuki, the manager of Halal KFC, had told the media that the closure of his restaurant was due to a “misunderstanding” without explaining further.

Pazuki had also emphasized that his restaurant was part of a Turkish brand known as Halal KFC, stressing that the group’s target market is Muslim nations.

The case nevertheless drew an immediate reaction from the KFC in the US with officials from the chain restaurant saying that they plan to lodge a complaint against those who had used KFC name and logo in Iran without having received a franchising right to do so.

The case now appears to have already opened a debate in Tehran over the investments by US restaurants and fast food enterprises in Iran.

Fazeli has emphasized that Iran has no policy to allow any American fast food resultant to operate in the country.

KFC, for its part, has already announced that it has no plans to invest in Iran even after the sanctions against the country are lifted.