CKE Restaurants Holdings, Inc. (“CKE”) announced today a master franchise agreement with Nevada Russia Franchising Company LLC (“NRFC”) to further expand Carl’s Jr.’s presence in the Russian Federation. The partnership marks an extension of CKE Restaurants’ international growth plans following the opening of its 1,000th international restaurant earlier this year in Spain. The two groups are aiming to develop 300+ restaurants throughout Russia during the initial term of the agreement.

 CKE is partnering with NRFC, a group that has extensive restaurant industry experience throughout Russia. Carl’s Jr. development efforts will be led by Steve Brown, who has rapidly grown QSR brands in Russia throughout the past 25 years, in addition to developing Carl’s Jr. franchise restaurants in Hawaii and Nevada.

“As CKE continues to expand the Carl’s Jr. brand around the world, we are always encouraged to find new partners like NRFC,” says Mike Woida, president of CKE International. “The Russian Federation is an exciting growth market for QSR and although we currently have a relatively small presence with Carl’s Jr., we have a tremendously loyal fan base within the communities in which we operate. Developing an additional 300+ restaurants within the country will greatly expand our footprint and  introduce our  products to new Russian consumers whom we look forward to serving.”

“We are very excited to partner in Russia with a great brand like Carl’s Jr.,” says Steve Brown, CEO of Nevada Russia Franchising Company.  “The Russian market is a challenging one, but there is plenty of room at the top for the exceptional quality that Carl’s Jr. brings to this segment of the [quick-service restaurant] space. With our great Russian team of experienced franchise industry specialists, we look forward to meeting the challenges head-on.”