User:JustforSchoolSC/sandbox

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Not to be confused with Marrybrown.
Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters
Company typePrivate
IndustryCasual dining
Fast Food
Founded1969; 55 years ago (1969)
FounderPat Tarrant
Cyril Fleming
HeadquartersMarkham, Ontario
Number of locations
Approx. 160
Key people
Gregory Roberts (CEO)
Number of employees
Approx. 2,100
Websitehttp://www.marybrowns.com
MaryBrown's headquarters in Markham

Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters, usually referred to as Mary Brown's, is a Canadian quick service restaurant chain headquartered in Markham, Ontario, that specializes in fried chicken and tater tots. Established in 1969 in St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador by Pat Tarrant and Cyril Fleming, the restaurant initially opened as the Golden Skillet. It was renamed after the wife of the restaurant's fried chicken recipe's creator in 1970. Mary Brown's was officially acquired by the current acting CEO, Gregory Roberts, in 2003. The brand has since expanded across North America and internationally, with approximately 160 locations coast-to-coast across Canada, with the balance of the stores being franchised.[1]

Mary Brown's original product is deep-fried, hand-breaded chicken that is seasoned with Brown's original recipe. The chain restaurant also specializes in farm-fresh, deep-fried french fries and tots. Mary Brown's extended menu also offers other chicken products such as wraps and chicken burgers, as well as side dishes such as poutine and coleslaw, desserts, and soft drinks. Mary Brown's is known for its slogans that reflect the brand's prepared in-store methods and Canadian heritage, such as "Made Fresh from Scratch" and "100% Canadian". Mary Brown's has also actively participated in philanthropic fundraising causes.

History[edit]

Mary Brown is the creator of the chain's proprietary chicken recipe for southern chicken. It was Brown's husband who sold the recipe to the founders of the brand, Pat Tarrant and Cyril Fleming. From there, Tarrant and Fleming brought the recipe to Newfoundland & Labrador to open business in 1969.[2] The first restaurant opened in St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador in 1969 as the "Golden Skillet". It was renamed to its present name in 1970 in honor of Mary Brown.[3]

By 1972, Mary Brown's had grown beyond the island of Newfoundland, opening locations in Oshawa and Mississauga, Ontario. From there, the chain expanded west to Alberta, back east to the Maritimes and to Manitoba and Saskatchewan. More recently, Mary Brown's has opened several locations in British Columbia, and a store in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The brand continues to grow coast-to-coast across Canada.[4]

Key executives[edit]

The current owner and CEO of Mary Brown's is Gregory Roberts of PI Enterprises Group, an entrepreneur and Chartered Accountant from Triton, Newfoundland & Labrador. Prior to purchasing the brand, Roberts had initially been involved with working with independent restaurants and small pizza-based franchises.[5] Originally a franchisee of the brand by buying three Mary Brown's restaurants in 2003, Roberts acquired the brand in 2007 and since that time, has grown the chain from about 67 stores to its current count of approximately 160 stores, with stores continuing to open internationally such as an Istanbul location in 2013.[6] Under Roberts' management, Mary Brown's has undertaken an implementation of "more vigorous standards" to redesign older work systems[7] in an effort to make the business more similar to the "warm hospitality of a small family business".[8]

The current President and COO of Mary Brown's is Hadi Chahin, a 20-year plus executive of the food services industry, who joined the company in 2017.[9] Prior to joining Mary Brown's, Hadi was the Vice President of Operations for Chartwells, a division of Compass Group Canada. He has also held leadership roles with Sodexo Canada, Prime Restaurants and White Lodging Services. Under Chahin, Mary Brown’s has undertaken a national rebrand by updating the restaurant’s appearance and utilizing marketing slogans that reflect the brand’s Canadian-owned heritage such as “100% Canadian”.[10] Chahin has also launched Mary Brown’s brand in new channels and expanded the chain in existing markets.

Products[edit]

Mary Brown's primary product is deep-fried, on-the-bone chicken pieces that are seasoned according to Mary Brown's "original recipe". The product is generally served in two to four piece individual servings, or on a family size "feast" platter that typically holds between 9 and 18 chicken pieces.[11] The product is hand-breaded and hand-marinated at individual Mary Brown's restaurants. Alongside its central chicken on the bone product, Mary Brown's other menu options include chicken burgers, chicken wraps, and a host of different finger foods that include chicken strips, popcorn chicken, and hot wings. In addition to fried chicken, Mary Brown's combo meals come with their other signature food product in the form of hand-cut, deep-fried tater tots. The meal is also available with a serving of a choice between poutine, coleslaw, onion rings, or macaroni and cheese.

Slogans and Logos[edit]

Mary Brown's uses the slogans "Made Fresh from Scratch" and "100% Canadian" in their materials. "Crave Delicious" has become the brand's overriding tagline since mid-2019.[12]

"Made Fresh from Scratch" is the wording often used in reference to the preparation methods of the menu items at Mary Brown’s, Chicken and Taters. Mary Brown's uses the word "handcrafted" to express how they prepare their food.[13]

"Truly Canadian" was adopted as a slogan in 2017 to reflect the brand's heritage as a Newfoundland-founded, Canadian-owned business. Company materials note that the company is family-owned and operated by Canadians, and sells Canada Grade A chicken raised by Canadian farmers.[14]

The character Mary Brown is used in the marketing and promotional material of Mary Brown’s Chicken and Taters. The new image of the Mary Brown character was launched in 2000 and has become a mainstay for the brand.[15] In late 2017, the logo underwent a color change and a rearranging. Mary Brown's Chicken and Taters original logo was developed in 1969 for the original restaurant named Golden Skillet. Since then Mary Brown’s chicken and Taters has undergone a few changes, the most noteworthy being in 2000 when Mary Brown’s Fried chicken rebranded to: Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters!. Later in 2017 changing again to: Mary Brown's Chicken and Taters.[16] In late 2017, the logo underwent a color change and a rearranging.

Community involvement[edit]

Mary Brown’s home office food drive[edit]

For local charity, Mary Brown’s Home Office held a food drive team competition in support of Eva’s Place, a local emergency shelter for homeless youth aged 16-24.[17]

In just one week, Mary Brown’s employees collected about $2,500 in monetary donations and non-perishable food, and Mary Brown’s Corporate matched the amount for almost $5,000.[18]

Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador franchise donation[edit]

Mary Brown’s Franchise in Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador supports former employee, Rachel Forsey (a young university student) with a donation cheque of $8,100.[19]

Cancer care lunch[edit]

On February 24, 2017 a lunch was provided to cancer care professionals (also known as oncology) who work at the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre.

During Mary Browns Community Day, the four corporate stores within the St. John’s region donated and supplied lunch for every staff member.[20]

Jackob Dawe fundraiser[edit]

Two Mary Browns locations (Mary’s Diner on Torbay Rd. and Mary Brown’s on Freshwater Road) raised over $1000 to help Jakob and his family exceed their fundraising goal.[21]

Jakob suffers from countless health challenges, like vision issues (blindness) and autism.

Janeway Children’s Hospital Foundation[edit]

See also: Janeway Children's Health and Rehabilitation Centre

The CEO, Greg Roberts donated $450 to the Janeway Children’s Hospital Foundation in St. John’s.

The donation was made to upgrade vital Magnetic Resonance Imaging equipment to help children of all ages with better outcomes.[22]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "COVER STORY: Mary Browns Chicken and Taters Celebrates Five Years of Made Fresh Food". PressReader. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  2. ^ "Mary's Story". Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  3. ^ "The Truly Surprising Story of Mary Brown's". The Overcast. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  4. ^ "Mary's Story". Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  5. ^ "Meet the Franchisor: Greg Roberts of Mary Brown's". Canadian Business Franchise. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  6. ^ "Meet the Franchisor: Greg Roberts of Mary Brown's". Canadian Business Franchise. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  7. ^ "Meet the Franchisor: Greg Roberts of Mary Brown's". Canadian Business Franchise. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  8. ^ "Mary Brown's: Canada's Best Managed Companies 2019". Canadian Business. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  9. ^ "Mary Brown's: Canada's Best Managed Companies 2019". Canadian Business. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  10. ^ "Home". Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  11. ^ "Menu items - Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters". Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2020-03-17.
  12. ^ "Home". Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  13. ^ "Mary Browns Celebrates 50th Anniversary". Newswire. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  14. ^ "Home". Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  15. ^ "Home". Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  16. ^ "Mary Browns". Fandom. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  17. ^ Mary Brown’s Home Office Food Drive, Mary Brown’s. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  18. ^ Mary Brown’s Home Office Food Drive, Mary Brown’s. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  19. ^ Supports with Donation, Mary Brown’s. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  20. ^ "Community Heroes: Mary Browns Treat Cancer Care Staff to Lunch". The Telegraph. March 5, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  21. ^ Jakob Dawe Fundraiser, Mary Brown’s. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  22. ^ Janeway Children’s Hospital Foundation, Mary Brown’s. Retrieved March 12, 2020.

[[Category:Canadian chicken dishes]] [[Category:Criticism of fast food]] [[Category:Fast-food poultry restaurants]] [[Category:Fast-food chains of Canada]] [[Category:Fast-food franchises]] [[Category:Food and drink in Canada]] [[Category:Fried chicken]] [[Category:Regional restaurant chains in Canada]] [[Category:Restaurant chains in Canada]] [[Category:Restaurants established in 1969]] [[Category:Restaurants in Newfoundland and Labrador]] [[Category:Restaurants in Ontario]] [[Category:1969 establishments in Newfoundland and Labrador]]

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