Boyhood

Harland Sanders was born on September 9, 1890, in a farm near Henryville, Indiana, USA. The family is not very wealthy, but they are still doing well. However, when he was 6 years old, his father passed away, leaving his mother and three children struggling to survive.

In order to make a living, my mother had to take on many jobs outside. She had to go to the food factory to peel potatoes during the day, and continued to sew clothes for others at night. She had no time to take care of the young children at home. Sanders was the eldest. He shouldered the heavy responsibility of taking care of his younger siblings. During the day, his mother was not at home, so little Sanders had to cook by himself. One year later, he learned to cook 20 dishes and became a well-known cooking expert.

Middle age

When he was 40 years old, Sanders came to Kentucky and opened a Kebin gas station. Because there were many customers coming and going to refuel, seeing these long-distance travelers Seeing the hungry faces of the people, Sanders had an idea, why don't I make some convenience food to satisfy the requirements of these people? Moreover, his craftsmanship is already good, and his wife and children often praise him. As soon as he thought of it, he cooked some daily meals in the small kitchen of the gas station to attract customers.

During this period, Sanders launched its own specialty food, which was the prototype of the later world-famous KFC fried chicken. Due to its delicious and unique taste, fried chicken soon became warmly welcomed. Customers praised the restaurant, and some even came not to refuel, but to eat the fried chicken from Kebin Gas Station.

When he first started doing this, Sanders was trying to expand his gas station business, but the reputation of fried chicken exceeded the gas station. Due to the increasing number of customers, the gas station could no longer accommodate it. Just across the street, Sanders opened a Sanders restaurant specializing in his specialty—fried chicken.

In order to ensure quality, Sanders put on an apron and started frying, and invested in expanding a large restaurant that can accommodate 142 people. In doing so, he created a rudimentary market for fried chicken. In the following years, while running the business, he researched the special ingredients for fried chicken (containing 11 kinds of herbs and spices, which make the skin of the fried chicken form a thin, almost unbaked shell, making the chicken moist and delicious.

To this day, this ingredient formula is still in use, but the number of seasonings has increased to 40, and this is KFC’s most important secret weapon, just like Coca-Cola’s formula).

By 1935, Sanders' fried chicken was famous far and wide. In order to thank him for his special contribution to the state's food, Kentucky Governor Ruby LaFond officially awarded him the rank of Kentucky Colonel, so people call him "Dear Colonel Sanders" to this day.

Late life

Poverty after World War II

Although the business was good, Sanders was not satisfied with such achievements. He was ingenious and went a step further. A motel was built next to the restaurant. In this way, before the famous Howard Johnson Motel was built, Sandoz became the first corporate conglomerate integrating food, accommodation and gas.

However, as the number of customers increased, Sanders felt that he lacked management experience. For this reason, he went to Cornell University in New York to study hotel industry management courses, which enabled him to solve the problems he faced in the future. hotel management problems, but there are still problems.

As the reputation of Sanders Restaurant grows, there are more and more customers. It is not an easy task to fry chicken for so many customers quickly and serve it to the table. Son. He was always busy frying chicken for customers while listening to the complaints from customers who were in a hurry.

Sanders is very troubled by this, what should he do? At this time, an accidental pressure cooker demonstration gave him an inspiration. The pressure cooker can greatly shorten the cooking time without burning the food, which is the best thing for his fried chicken.

In 1939, Sanders bought a pressure cooker. After conducting various experiments on cooking time, pressure and oil, he finally discovered a unique method of frying chicken. The fried chicken fried under pressure was the most delicious fried chicken he had ever tasted. To this day, KFC Fried Chicken still maintains this secret of using a pressure cooker.

And just as he imagined, it only took 15 minutes to fry a chicken. The short time and delicious fried chicken immediately became a hot topic at the time, and many diners flocked to it, even in the 1930s. During the Great Depression, Sandoz's business was still booming.

However, the outbreak of World War II dealt a serious blow to Sandoz. The government implemented oil rationing and the gas station was forced to close. Then, when the new Trans-Kentucky Highway passed through Sanders' hotel, the hotel was forced to close. This sudden change pushed Sanders into the abyss. In order to repay his debts, he even used up all his bank savings.

Harlan Sanders, the former respected colonel, suddenly changed from a respected rich man to a worthless poor man. At this time, Sanders was 56 years old and all he could rely on was a monthly benefit of $105. But Sanders didn't want to end his life here. Besides, the relief fund couldn't sustain his life at all, so he had to rely on himself for everything.

He looked at the first social security check the government gave him and said to himself: "The government has to give me 105 yuan every month to let me live on. There must be something I can do for myself and for others. Others did it."

Sanders thought hard about what to do to get out of the predicament. The most valuable thing he owned was fried chicken, which was a huge intangible asset. Suddenly, he remembered that he had sold the fried chicken recipe to a restaurant owner in Utah. This boss did a good job, so several restaurant owners also bought Sanders' fried chicken ingredients.

For every chicken they sold, they paid Sanders 5 cents. In his predicament, Sanders thought, maybe there are still people doing this, and maybe this is a new starting point for his career. In this way, Colonel Sanders started his second business. He took a pressure cooker and a 50-pound bucket of ingredients and drove his old Ford on the road.

Wearing a white suit and a black bow, a white-haired colonel dressed like a Southern gentleman stopped at the door of every restaurant from Kentucky to Ohio, selling the secret recipe for fried chicken and asking for it to be given to the boss and clerk. Show fried chicken. If they like fried chicken, sell them a franchise, provide the ingredients, and teach them how to fry it.

At the beginning, no one believed him. The restaurant owner even thought it was a waste of time to listen to this strange old man's nonsense. Sanders' publicity work was very difficult. For two years, he was rejected 1,009 times. Finally, when he walked into a restaurant for the 1,010th time, he got an "Okay" answer. When there is one person, there will be a second person. With Sanders's persistence, his idea was finally accepted by more and more people.

In 1952, the first authorized KFC restaurant was established in Salt Lake City, which was the beginning of the world's catering franchise. Then, to the surprise of more people, Sandoz's business snowballed. In just five years, he has developed 400 chain stores in the United States and Canada.

In 1955, Colonel Sanders' KFC Co., Ltd. was officially established. At the same time, he accepted an invitation to appear on a talk show on a Colorado television station. Since he was busy at work all day, he had to find the only neat suit - a white palm suit, put on the black-rimmed glasses he had worn for many years, and appeared in front of the public.

The image of the veteran Southern colonel cooking fried chicken soon attracted many reporters and TV hosts. Sanders, who was nearly 70 years old, was surrounded by people clamoring to cooperate with him. Restaurant representatives looking to buy franchises are still coming in droves. To this end, he built a school and asked these restaurant owners to come to KFC to learn how to operate a franchised fried chicken restaurant.

In 1964, an investment group composed of John Brown, a 29-year-old young lawyer, and Jack Massey, a 60-year-old capitalist, were deeply moved by Sandoz's career. They wanted to use US$2 million was used to purchase the business, which was a considerable amount at the time. Although he was extremely reluctant to part with it, considering that he was already 74 years old, Sanders agreed and handed over the next business to the next generation. Do it.

Extended information

Secrets of Sandoz’s success

Sandoz travels to various cities and restaurants, often resting in the car and living on his own fried chicken , and believes his secret formula will one day pay off. His perseverance and confidence finally brought him huge rewards! Although Sanders has never disclosed his formula, he has disclosed the secret of his success:

1. Don’t give up.

2. Always believe in yourself.

3. Be patient.

4. Have positive thoughts.

5. It is not too late to start a business at the age of 66.

6. Face the 1009th failure calmly.

7. "More people get rusty from idleness than exhausted. If I ever get rusty from idleness, I will go to hell."

Personal Achievement

In every corner of the world, in every city in China, we will often see the smiling face of an old man, with a gray beard, a white suit, and black glasses. He will always be dressed like this, with this smile, I’m afraid. The most famous and expensive smile in the world, because this amiable old man is the sign and logo of the famous fast food chain "KFC" - Colonel Harland Sanders.

Of course, he is also the creator of this famous brand. The fried chicken we eat at KFC today was invented by Sandoz. From the original street shop to today's food empire, Sanders has gone through a bumpy entrepreneurial road. Invented the famous "Kentucky Fried Chicken" and has more than 15,000 restaurants around the world.

Harland Sanders, who was only seven years old in 1897, already knew more than a dozen country cooking recipes.

In the small kitchen of his roadside restaurant in 1930, Harlan Sanders successfully developed the KFC secret formula.

In 1939, the restaurant business was booming, and Harland Sanders' craftsmanship and reputation attracted a large number of customers. In recognition of his contribution to the culinary industry, Harland Sanders was named a Kentucky Fried Chicken Colonel.

In 1950, Colonel Harlan Sanders began licensing operations across the United States. With strict quality requirements, the colonel personally provides guidance to authorized franchisees.

In the 1960s, people all over the United States enjoyed the delicious taste of KFC's original chicken. The company gradually integrates into people's lives.

The colonel passed away in 1980, and his hometown state government bestowed him with lifelong honors. KFC continues to thrive, and there are more than 20,000 KFC chain restaurants around the world.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Harland Sanders