72andSunny Re-appointed as Creative AOR for Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s

CKE Restaurant Holdings, parent company of Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s, has appointed Chad Crawford as its chief brand officer. As one of his first orders of business, Crawford has re-engaged 72andSunny as the creative agency of record for both brands. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Chad to CKE, and I look forward to partnering with him as we propel the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s brands forward as industry-leading innovators that serve the highest quality, best tasting food in our category,” said Ned Lyerly, chief executive officer at CKE Restaurants. “Chad is a brand builder with a tremendous track record of performance, and we are confident in his ability to reignite our marketing efforts, build relevancy with our customers and partner with our franchise community.” 

Crawford brings with him a wealth of QSR experience having spent more than 20 years working in the space. He started his journey at KFC, Burger King and Denny’s before landing at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, where he held a number of leadership roles over the last eight years, including Calendar Strategy, Marketing Impact, Guest Experience, Chief Marketing Officer and, most recently, President, North America. 

As chief brand officer, Crawford will be responsible for leading brand marketing vision and strategy to deliver memorable campaigns, compelling menus and sustainable and profitable growth for the entire system. First on his list of priorities was identifying the right agency partner to develop highly memorable creative campaigns for both brands. Former Creative Agency of Record 72andSunny fit the bill.

“72andSunny helped make Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s ‘impossible to ignore’ for six years,” said Crawford. “I’m confident they can make both brands ’impossible to ignore’ again, but in a fresh, new way that reflects the ever-changing marketplace, and I’m excited about the insight and positioning that we have unlocked as a foundation for our new creative expression and look forward to seeing that come to life.” 

As creative agency of record, 72andSunny will be responsible for brand-specific creative as well as dual-brand creative, as needed. “Here's the opportunity for 72andSunny to work with two iconic brands with massive potential, and incredible partners who share our ambition to shoot for the moon,” said Jess Monsey, president of 72andSunny, New York. “And of course, we're talking about delicious burgers and biscuits! As you can probably imagine, we're feeling very excited about what's to come.”

Both brands have grabbed attention this year with the launch of the first ever CBD Burger on 4.20 and the Beyond Famous Star at Carl’s Jr., as well as the return of roast beef and the launch of the southwest patty melt featuring a hotter and juicier third-pound black angus burger at Hardee’s.