LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Employees are now on a timeline to pack up and relocate after Yum! Brands announced plans to move KFC U.S. operations to Texas.

This is the latest in a string of high-profile business departures from the Louisville area.

What You Need To Know

  • Approximately 100 Louisville-based Yum! Brands employees are relocating to Texas, the company announced

  • This is the latest in a string of high-profile business departures for the Louisville area

  • The corporate United States KFC office will shift to Plano, Texas

  • Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Ky., said he is grateful more than 500 Yum! employees will remain in Louisville but is disappointed about the decision

The corporate United States KFC office will shift to Plano, Texas. It affects 100 Louisville-based employees who have a year to move and 90 remote employees who have 18 months to move.

Pizza Hut and KFC will be out of Plano.

Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Louisville, said it’s a shame to move KFC out of the commonwealth.

“You know, several years ago, the Kentucky General Assembly, they passed a right-to-work law," McGarvey said. "They reduced corporate taxes and they said, 'This is going to bring jobs here.'"

"And since then, we've lost Papa John's. We've now lost Kentucky Fried Chicken. We know that Humana is kind of not the presence it once was here and maybe they should be talking about things that really make a difference.”

Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Ky., said he is grateful more than 500 Yum! employees will remain in Louisville but is disappointed about the decision to move KFC.

Beshear said the company’s name starts with Kentucky and has marketed the state’s heritage and culture in the sale of its product. He urges Yum! Brands to rethink moving KFC employees out of state.

“Businesses across our region and the globe are facing different challenges and industry demands that necessitate streamlining corporate resources," said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, Greater Louisville Inc. president and CEO. "Some of these demands include shifting workplace environments and expectations, national inflationary and economic pressures and the natural cycle of reorganization that happens cyclically in most large corporations.” 

She said they announced several new expansions to downtown Louisville last week, despite the challenges.

Yum! Brands said the parent company and the KFC Foundation will continue operating out of Louisville, adding Taco Bell and Habit Bar and Grill brands will continue to be headquartered in Irvine, California.

Related Stories