Просмотр кода страницы Английская Википедия:Hooters

{{Английская Википедия/Панель перехода}}
{{Short description|American restaurant chain}}
{{About|the two restaurant chains collectively using the shared Hooters brand}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox company
| name               = Hooters, Inc
| logo               = HootersNewLogo.svg
| type               = [[Private Company|Private]]
| founded            = {{start date and age|1983|10|4}}<br />[[Clearwater, Florida]], U.S.
| location_city      = 
| location_country   = 
| location           = [[Atlanta, Georgia]], U.S.
| locations          = 430+
| area_fo            = 
| industry           = Food service
| products           = Burgers, chicken wings, seafood, Tex-Mex, full bar<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hooters.com/menu/|title=Hooters Menu|website=hooters.com|access-date=February 8, 2019|archive-date=February 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209232333/https://www.hooters.com/menu/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| services           = 
| founders           = [[Lynn D. Stewart (businessman)|Lynn D. Stewart]]<br />Gil DiGiannantonio<br />[[Edward C. Droste|Ed Droste]]<br />Billy Ranieri<br />Ken Wimmer<br />Dennis Johnson
| operating_income   = 
| owner              = Nord Bay Capital<br>TriArtisan Capital Advisor
| net_income         = 
| revenue            = {{increase}} [[United States dollar|US$]]605 million
| revenue_year       = 2021<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/top-500-chains-2021/hooters|website=Restaurant Business Online|title=Hooters|access-date=July 22, 2022|archive-date=May 18, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518203527/https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/top-500-chains-2021/hooters|url-status=live}}</ref>
| num_employees      = 15,000
| num_employees_year = 2021<ref name="auto"/>
| parent             = 
| divisions          = 
| area_served        = Worldwide
| subsid             = 
| homepage           = {{URL|hooters.com}}
| dissolved          = 
| footnotes          = 
}}
'''Hooters''' is the registered trademark<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4803:64vyzd.3.1 |access-date=2019-12-30 |title=Word Mark: Hooters |work=[[United States Patent and Trademark Office]] |archive-date=2020-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200117233206/http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4803:64vyzd.3.1 |url-status=live}}</ref> used by two American restaurant chains: '''Hooters, Inc.''', based in Clearwater, Florida, and '''Hooters of America, Inc.''' based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by the private investment firm Nord Bay Capital (with TriArtisan Capital Advisor, as its advisor).<ref>{{cite web |last=Klein |first=Danny |date=July 2019 |title=Hooters Sold to Nord Bay Capital, Plans Fast Casual Expansion |url=https://www.fsrmagazine.com/chain-restaurants/hooters-sold-nord-bay-capital-plans-fast-casual-expansion |access-date=2021-08-20 |website=FSR magazine |language=en |archive-date=2021-08-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210820185835/https://www.fsrmagazine.com/chain-restaurants/hooters-sold-nord-bay-capital-plans-fast-casual-expansion |url-status=live}}</ref> The Hooters name is a [[double entendre]] referring to both a North American slang term for women's [[breasts]] and the logo (a bird known for its "hooting" calls: the [[owl]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.originalhooters.com/saga/the-beginning/ |title=Hooters - The Original - The Beginning |website=Originalhooters.com |access-date=2017-08-18 |archive-date=2017-08-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170814090231/http://www.originalhooters.com/saga/the-beginning/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[waiting staff]] at Hooters restaurants are primarily young women, usually referred to simply as "Hooters Girls", whose revealing outfits and [[sex appeal]] are played up and are a primary component of the company's image. The company employs men and women as cooks, hosts (at some franchises), [[busboy]]s, and managers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rochesternow.org/hooters.html |title=WAVE's Review of Hooters |last1=Kasper |first1=Barbara |last2=Moore |first2=Barbara |publisher=Rochester NY NOW |access-date=2010-12-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101002055229/http://www.rochesternow.org/hooters.html |archive-date=2010-10-02}} Originally published as "Restaurant puts workers on display", ''Democrat and Chronicle'', April 12, 1995.</ref> The menu includes [[hamburger]]s and other [[sandwich]]es, steaks, seafood entrees, appetizers, and the restaurant's specialty, [[Buffalo wing|chicken wings]]. Almost all Hooters restaurants hold alcoholic beverage licenses to sell beer and wine, and where local permits allow, a full liquor bar. Hooters T-shirts, sweatshirts, and various souvenirs and curios are also sold.

{{As of|2016}}, there were more than 430 Hooters locations and franchises around the world and Hooters of America LLC. owns 160 units. In 2012, there were Hooters locations in 44 US states, the [[United States Virgin Islands]], [[Guam]], and 28 other countries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hooters.know-where.com/hooters/cgi/index?mapid=intl&design=default&lang=en |title=Hooters locations |website=Hooters.know-where.com |access-date=2017-08-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426081717/http://hooters.know-where.com/hooters/cgi/index?mapid=intl&design=default&lang=en |archive-date=2012-04-26}}</ref> Hooters also had an [[airline]], [[Hooters Air]], with a normal flight crew and flight attendants and scantily clad "Hooters Girls" on every flight.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hootersair.com/ |title=HootersAir |date=2006-04-21 |access-date=2017-08-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060421112007/http://www.hootersair.com/ |archive-date=2006-04-21}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Hooters Logo.svg|thumb|left|1983–2013 Hooters logo]]

Hooters, Inc., was incorporated in [[Clearwater, Florida]], on April 1, 1983, by six Clearwater businessmen: [[Lynn D. Stewart (businessman)|Lynn D. Stewart]], Gil DiGiannantonio, [[Edward C. Droste|Ed Droste]], Billy Ranieri, Ken Wimmer and Dennis Johnson.
The date was an April Fools' Day joke because the original six owners believed that their prospect was going to fail. Their first Hooters restaurant was built on the site of a former rundown nightclub that had been purchased at a low price. So many businesses had folded in that particular location that the Hooters founders built a small "graveyard" at the front door for each that had come and gone before them. The first restaurant opened its doors on October 4, 1983, in Clearwater.<ref name="HHist">[https://web.archive.org/web/20071215120028/http://www.originalhooters.com/saga.cfm?pg=1983 Hooters History] at Internet Archive. Accessed March 6, 2013.</ref> This original location was decorated with memorabilia from [[Waverly, Iowa]], hometown to some of the original Hooters 6.

In December 1984, Hugh Connerty bought the rights to Hooters from the Original Hooters 6. [[Robert H. Brooks]] and a group of [[Atlanta]] investors (operators of Hooters of America, Inc.) bought out Hugh Connerty. In 2002, Brooks bought majority control and became chairman.<ref name=OriginalHooters2002>{{cite web |url=http://www.originalhooters.com/saga.cfm?pg=2002 |title=The Original Hooters-Hooters Saga |publisher=Hooters Inc. |access-date=2008-01-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215120013/http://www.originalhooters.com/saga.cfm?pg=2002 |archive-date=2007-12-15}}</ref> The Clearwater-based company retained control over restaurants in the [[Tampa Bay Area]], [[Chicago metropolitan area]], and one in [[Manhattan]],<ref name=OriginalHootersLoc>{{cite web |url=http://www.originalhooters.com/locations.cfm |title=The Original Hooters-Hooters Locations |publisher=Hooters, Inc. |access-date=2008-01-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071024034032/http://www.originalhooters.com/locations.cfm |archive-date=2007-10-24 |url-status=dead}}</ref> while all other locations were under the aegis of Hooters of America, which sold franchising rights to the rest of the United States and international locations.<ref name=HOAhistory>{{cite web |url=http://www.hooters.com/company/about_hooters/ |title=About Hooters |access-date=2008-01-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080105112107/http://www.hooters.com/company/about_hooters/ |archive-date=2008-01-05 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Under Brooks's leadership, the collective Hooters brand expanded to more than 425 stores worldwide. Brooks died on July 15, 2006, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, of a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]].<ref name=Hooters2007>{{cite web |url=http://www.originalhooters.com/saga.cfm?pg=2007 |title=Hooters History-2007 |publisher=Hooters Inc. |access-date=2008-01-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215120243/http://www.originalhooters.com/saga.cfm?pg=2007 |archive-date=2007-12-15 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Brooks's [[Will (law)|will]] gave most of Hooters of America Inc. to his son [[Coby Brooks]] and daughter Boni Belle Brooks.<ref name="Spring">{{cite news |url=http://www.thesunnews.com/2010/12/03/1847447/2-firms-fight-for-hooters.html |title=2 firms fight for Hooters |last=Spring |first=Jake |work=[[The Sun News]] |date=2010-12-03 |access-date=2010-12-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204100648/http://www.thesunnews.com/2010/12/03/1847447/2-firms-fight-for-hooters.html |archive-date=2013-02-04}}</ref>

<gallery class="center" widths="160px" heights="100px">
File:2009-02-22 Hooters in Morrisville.jpg|Hooters in [[Morrisville, North Carolina]], 2009
File:Hoot1.JPG|The interior of a Hooters restaurant in [[Chattanooga, Tennessee]], in 2006 before being remodeled years later
File:Kleine Rittergasse (8354982983).jpg|Hooters restaurant in [[Sachsenhausen (Frankfurt am Main)|Alt-Sachsenhausen]], [[Frankfurt, Germany]]
File:Hooters Restaurant.jpg|Hooters restaurant at night, [[U.S. Route 1|Route One]], [[Saugus, Massachusetts]]
</gallery>

The Hooters Casino Hotel was opened February 2, 2006, off the [[Las Vegas Strip]] in [[Paradise, Nevada]], adjacent to the [[Tropicana Resort & Casino|Tropicana]], across the street from the [[MGM Grand Las Vegas]]. It became the [[Oyo Hotel & Casino]] in 2019, though the Hooters restaurant on the property remains open.

As part of their 25th anniversary, ''Hooters Magazine'' released its list of top Hooters Girls of all time. Among the best-known were [[Lynne Austin]] (the original Hooters Girl), the late Kelly Jo Dowd (the mother of the golfer [[Dakoda Dowd]]), [[Bonnie-Jill Laflin]], [[Leeann Tweeden]], and [[Holly Madison]].<ref>"The Top Hooters Girls of all time". ''Hooters Magazine''. July/August 2008. p. 100–113.</ref><ref>[http://halloffame.hooters.com/ Hooters Hall of Fame.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160219225019/https://halloffame.hooters.com/ |date=February 19, 2016}} – accessed June 17, 2009.</ref>

After Brooks' death in 2006, 240 buyers showed interest in Hooters of America Inc., and 17 submitted bids, with that number being reduced to eight, and then three, before the selection of [[Wellspring Capital Management]].<ref name=Spring/> Chanticleer Holdings LLC of [[Charlotte, North Carolina]], which had the right to block the sale after a $5 million loan made in 2006, did so in a December 1, 2010, letter to the court. As a result, Chanticleer and other investors bought the company from the Brooks family <ref name="Family"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/01/20/1931043/nc-firm-to-buy-hooters.html |title=N.C. firm to buy Hooters |last=Spring |first=Jake |work=[[The Sun News]] |date=2011-01-20 |access-date=2011-01-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111109221201/http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/01/20/1931043/nc-firm-to-buy-hooters.html |archive-date=2011-11-09}}</ref>

In January 2011, Chanticleer and others completed the purchase of Hooters of America Inc. from the Brooks family.<ref name=Family>{{cite news |url=http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/02/08/1968567/hooters-leaves-family.html |title=Hooters leaves local family |last=Spring |first=Jake |work=[[The Sun News]] |date=2011-02-08 |access-date=2011-02-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204030630/http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/02/08/1968567/hooters-leaves-family.html |archive-date=2013-02-04}}</ref>

{{as of|July 2013}}, Hooters of America owned 160 restaurants and operates or franchises over 430.<ref name="about">{{cite web |url=https://www.facebook.com/pg/hooters/about/?ref=page_internal |title=Hooters |website=Facebook.com |access-date=2017-08-18 |archive-date=2021-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309015515/https://www.facebook.com/pg/hooters/about/?ref=page_internal |url-status=live}}</ref>

On July 1, 2019, Hooters was sold to Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors.<ref>{{cite web |last=Lalley |first=Heather |title=Hooter of America has been sold |url=https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/hooters-america-has-been-sold |date=2019-07-01 |work=Restaurant Business Online |access-date=2019-07-10 |archive-date=2019-07-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190711013833/https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/hooters-america-has-been-sold |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Owens |first=Crystal |title=Hooters franchise sold to local investment group |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2019/07/02/hooters-franchise-sold-to-local-investment-group.html |work=[[American City Business Journals|Tampa Bay Business Journal]] |date=2019-07-02 |access-date=2019-07-10 |archive-date=2021-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308133802/https://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2019/07/02/hooters-franchise-sold-to-local-investment-group.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Hoots spinoff===
In response to declining sales, in 2017 the company launched a [[fast casual restaurant|fast casual]] spinoff of its format called "Hoots". Hoots is distinguished from its original concept primarily by a reduction in menu items and employment of both male and female servers who are modestly dressed in t-shirts and khakis.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nrn.com/fast-casual/hooters-franchisee-open-fast-casual-spinoff |title=Hooters franchisee to open fast-casual spinoff |website=[[Nation's Restaurant News]] |date=2017-02-01 |access-date=2020-01-13 |last=Maze |first=Jonathan |archive-date=2020-01-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200114020923/https://www.nrn.com/fast-casual/hooters-franchisee-open-fast-casual-spinoff |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct-food-hoots-opening-logan-square-south-loop-20190416-story.html |title=Hoots, the family-friendly concept from Hooters, opening locations in Logan Square and South Loop |website=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=2019-04-16 |access-date=2020-01-13 |last=Kindelsperger |first=Nick |archive-date=2020-01-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113183045/https://www.chicagotribune.com/dining/ct-food-hoots-opening-logan-square-south-loop-20190416-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Hooters Girls==
{{multiple image
 | total_width = 340
 | image1      = Hooters Calendar Girl Melissa Poe.jpg
 | caption1    = Hooters Calendar Girl Melissa Poe in 2004<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.25idl.army.mil/Deployment/OEF%20Afghanistan/Deployment/04Jun04pictures.htm |title=OEF Deployment Photos |publisher=US Army 25th Infantry Division |date=2004-06-04 |access-date=2013-10-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060708024255/http://www.25idl.army.mil/Deployment/OEF%20Afghanistan/Deployment/04Jun04pictures.htm |archive-date=2006-07-08}}</ref>
 | image2      = 2019-02-15 Hooters Thailand (cropped).jpg
 | caption2    = Two Hooters girls in Thailand in 2019
}}
The appearance of the waitresses is a main selling feature of the restaurant. A ''Hooters Girl'' is a waitress employed by the Hooters restaurant chain, and they are recognizable by their uniform of a white [[Sleeveless shirt|tank top]] with the "Hootie the Owl" logo and the location name on the front paired with short nylon orange [[Dolphin shorts]]. The remainder of the Hooters Girls uniform consists of the restaurant's brown ticket pouch (or a black one with the black uniform), tan [[pantyhose]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hooterspantyhose.com/ |title=Welcome To Hooters Pantyhose |work=Hooter Girls |access-date=2019-12-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407001843/http://hooterspantyhose.com/ |archive-date=2018-04-07}}</ref> white [[loose socks]], and clean white shoes. Men who work at Hooters wear Hooters hats, T-shirts with long pants, [[Bermuda shorts]], or attire more suitable for kitchen use.<ref name="hootergun"/>

===Employee handbook requirements===
An older version of the Hooters Employee Handbook (prior to October 2006), published in [[The Smoking Gun]] reads:<ref name=hootergun>{{cite web |url=http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0915051hooters1.html |title=So You Wanna Be A "Hooters" Girl? |date=2010-07-21 |publisher=[[The Smoking Gun]] |access-date=2006-10-16 |archive-date=2006-10-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061019035625/http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0915051hooters1.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

<blockquote>Customers can go to many places for wings and beer, but it is our Hooters Girls who make our concept unique. Hooters offers its customers the look of the "All American Cheerleader, Surfer, Girl Next Door."</blockquote>

Female employees are required to sign that they "acknowledge and affirm" the following:
# My job duties require I wear the designated Hooters Girl uniform.
# My job duties require that I interact with and entertain the customers.
# The Hooters concept is based on female [[sex appeal]] and the work environment is one in which joking and entertaining conversations are commonplace.

==Legal issues==
===Legal history===
In 1997, three men from the Chicago area sued Hooters after being denied employment at an [[Orland Park, Illinois]], restaurant. Each of them was awarded $19,100. Four men who filed a similar lawsuit in [[Maryland]] received $10,350 each. The settlement allows Hooters to continue gender-restricted hiring in its wait staff; the chain agreed to create other support jobs, like bartenders and hosts, that must be filled without regard to gender.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/01/us/hooters-settles-suit-by-men-denied-jobs.html |title=Hooters Settles Suit By Men Denied Jobs |access-date=2009-10-10 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=1997-10-01 |archive-date=2009-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090710073214/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/01/us/hooters-settles-suit-by-men-denied-jobs.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2000, a federal jury ordered Hooters to pay $275,000 to former waitress Sara Steinhoff, who claimed in her lawsuit that she was the target of unwanted sexual advances, demeaning behavior and recrimination from managers while she worked at the Hooters in [[Newport, Kentucky]], between October 1996 and October 1997.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=96429&page=1 |title=Hooters Loses Sexual Harassment Case |publisher=ABC News |date=2000-07-21 |accessdate=2022-04-20 |archive-date=2022-07-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716144608/https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=96429&page=1 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2001, a jury determined Hooters of Augusta Inc. willfully violated the [[Telephone Consumer Protection Act]] by sending [[unsolicited advertisement|unsolicited advertising]] faxes. The class-action lawsuit, brought in June 1995 by Sam Nicholson, included 1,320 others who said they received the advertising faxes from Hooters. Atlanta-based Hooters of America Inc., the local restaurant's parent company, paid out $11 million.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/050101/bus_085-6052.000.shtml |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707165706/http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/050101/bus_085-6052.000.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-07 |title=Hooters hit with $11.9 million fee |newspaper=The Augusta Chronicle |date=2001-05-01 |access-date=2009-10-10}}</ref> The jury determined that six faxes were sent to each plaintiff. With a $500 fine for each, that amounts to a $3,000 award per plaintiff.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/032201/met_085-5970.000.shtml |title=Hooters faces hefty fine after losing fax lawsuit |newspaper=The Augusta Chronicle |date=2001-03-22 |access-date=2009-10-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080228100006/http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/032201/met_085-5970.000.shtml |archive-date=2008-02-28}}</ref>

Also in 2001, Jodee Berry, a waitress at a Hooters in [[Panama City Beach, Florida]], won a beer sales contest, for which the promised prize was a new [[Toyota]] automobile. However, the manager awarded her a "toy [[Yoda]]" instead, claiming the contest was an April Fool's Day joke. Berry filed a lawsuit against Gulf Coast Wings, the local franchisee, and later reached a settlement.<ref>[https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2002/05/09/toy-yoda.htm Former Hooters waitress settles toy Yoda suit] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703232804/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2002/05/09/toy-yoda.htm |date=2023-07-03}} May 9, 2002. USA Today. Retrieved December 15, 2018.</ref>

In 2004, it was found that job applicants to a Hooters in [[West Covina, California]], were secretly filmed while undressing, prompting a civil suit filed against the national restaurant chain in Los Angeles Superior Court.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/04/09/hooters/ |title=More women join lawsuit against Hooters |access-date=2009-10-10 |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=2004-04-09 |archive-date=2008-10-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081020234403/http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/04/09/hooters/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The company addressed the incident with additional employee training.

In 2009, Nikolai Grushevski, a man from [[Corpus Christi, Texas]], filed a lawsuit because Hooters would not hire him as a waiter. Grushevski and Hooters reached a confidential settlement on April 13.<ref name="fox">{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,517334,00.html |title=Texas Man Settles Discrimination Lawsuit Against Hooters for Not Hiring Male Waiters |access-date=2009-10-10 |publisher=[[Fox News]] |date=2009-04-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806064958/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,517334,00.html |archive-date=2009-08-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In September 2009, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against a [[North Carolina]] charter airline (formerly Hooters Air, owned by Hooters of America) on behalf of Chau Nguyen, an Asian flight attendant fired three years prior after complaining only white workers were being promoted.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newser.com/article/d9at9qoo0/nc-charter-airline-formerly-hooters-air-hit-with-discrimination-lawsuit-after-ceos-arrest.html |title=NC charter airline, formerly Hooters Air, hit with discrimination lawsuit after CEO's arrest |access-date=2009-10-10}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

In May 2010, a lawsuit was filed against Hooters in [[Michigan]] after an employee was given a job performance review and was told that her shirt and short size could use some improvement by two women who held positions at the headquarters in Atlanta. Michigan is the only state that includes height and weight as bounds for non-discrimination in hiring. The plaintiff alleges that she was made the offer of a free gym membership and told that if she did not improve in 30 days, her employment would be terminated.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/23656598/detail.html |title=Former Hooters Waitress Files Lawsuit |publisher=Clickondetroit.com |date=2010-05-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527030930/http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/23656598/detail.html |archive-date=2010-05-27}}</ref> The company denied that they threatened to fire the plaintiffs, and the suit was settled out of court.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nbc25news.com/news/local/mi-hooters-girls-allegedly-told-to-lose-weight-or-lose-their-jobs-will-settle-out-of-court |title=MI Hooters Girls, allegedly told to lose weight or lose their jobs, will settle out of court |last=Hillaker |first=Allison |date=2011-07-17 |website=WEYI |access-date=2017-08-18 |archive-date=2017-08-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170819021809/http://nbc25news.com/news/local/mi-hooters-girls-allegedly-told-to-lose-weight-or-lose-their-jobs-will-settle-out-of-court |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2011, a number of former Hooters executives left to start the [[Twin Peaks (restaurant chain)|Twin Peaks]] franchise group. Hooters filed suit and alleged that former Hooters executives stole trade secrets and management documents as part as their move to the new restaurant chain.<ref name="Huffington Post">{{cite news |last=Jamieson |first=Dave |title=Hooters Lawsuit Claims Rival Restaurant Stole 'Trade Secrets' |newspaper=[[The Huffington Post]] |location=New York |date=2011-09-30 |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/30/hooters-lawsuit_n_988972.html |access-date=2012-08-21 |archive-date=2012-06-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120624074323/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/30/hooters-lawsuit_n_988972.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2012, former employee Jheri Stratton filed suit after catching the airborne disease [[tuberculosis]] from one of her managers.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rector |first=Kevin |url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2012-06-07/news/bs-md-ci-hooters-tuberculosis-20120607_1_hooters-waitress-hooters-girls-tuberculosis |title=Hooters waitress contracts tuberculosis at Inner Harbor restaurant |newspaper=Baltimore Sun |date=2012-06-07 |access-date=2013-10-06 |archive-date=2013-06-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622063722/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2012-06-07/news/bs-md-ci-hooters-tuberculosis-20120607_1_hooters-waitress-hooters-girls-tuberculosis |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/tag/jheri-stratton/ |title=Jheri Stratton |publisher=CBS Baltimore |access-date=2013-10-06 |archive-date=2015-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150227134529/http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/tag/jheri-stratton/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Also in 2012, Kisuk Cha, a Korean American immigrant who placed a takeout order at a Hooters in Queens, New York, sued the restaurant chain for racial discrimination after noticing a racial slur printed on a cash register receipt by a hostess who later confessed and subsequently resigned. The case was dismissed in 2013.<ref>{{cite court |litigants=Cha v. Hooters Of America, LLC |vol= |reporter= |opinion= |pinpoint= |court= |date= |url=https://www.leagle.com/decision/infdco20131007919 |access-date= |quote= |postscript=}}</ref>

On April 2, 2015, former employee Farryn Johnson was awarded $250,000 after an arbitrator found that racial discrimination contributed to her termination. Johnson was terminated in August 2013 after her store manager (from the Hooters in Baltimore, Maryland) told her that she could not have blonde highlights in her hair. Johnson filed a civil rights complaint with the State of Maryland Civil Rights Division where her attorneys stated the applicability of the dress code for Black Americans and everyone else (e.g. non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanic/Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander American) where one set of policies pertains to a certain group of people was considered as racial discrimination. A statement from Hooters of America by Ericka Whitaker (Hooters of America senior brand manager) stated that she had no issue of having blonde highlights as a Hooters Girl prior to becoming a brand manager and the company will continue to diversify its employees, from the restaurant to the annual Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-hooters-waitress-awarded-250-000-racial-discrimination-case-n337396 |title=Former Hooters Waitress Awarded $250,000 in Racial Discrimination Case |publisher=NBC News |access-date=2015-04-07 |archive-date=2015-04-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150408065403/http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-hooters-waitress-awarded-250-000-racial-discrimination-case-n337396 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.hooters.com/landing-page/hooters-responds-discrimination-arbitration |title=Hooters Responds to Discrimination Arbitration |access-date=2015-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150407203756/http://news.hooters.com/landing-page/hooters-responds-discrimination-arbitration |archive-date=2015-04-07 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/hooters-ordered-pay-250-000-racial-discrimination-article-1.2177919 |title=Hooters ordered to pay $250,000 to black waitress who was told she couldn't have blond streaks in her hair |website=[[New York Daily News]] |access-date=2015-04-08 |archive-date=2015-04-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150409031748/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/hooters-ordered-pay-250-000-racial-discrimination-article-1.2177919 |url-status=live}}</ref>

On September 11, 2017,<ref name=velezlawsuit>{{cite news |url=https://unicourt.com/case/pc-db1-velez-v-hooters-of-america-llc-et-al-563492 |title=Velez v. Hooters Of America, LLC et al |publisher=UniCourt |date=2020-07-15 |accessdate=2022-04-20 |archive-date=2022-04-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420221038/https://unicourt.com/case/pc-db1-velez-v-hooters-of-america-llc-et-al-563492 |url-status=live}}</ref> former [[Philadelphia]]-area Hooters waitress Jade Velez filed a lawsuit against Hooters alleging she was a victim of workplace sexual assault by a former kitchen employee.<ref name=philly2017>{{cite news |url=https://www.phillymag.com/news/2017/09/14/hooters-waitress-sexually-assaulted-northeast/ |title=Hooters Waitress Says She Was Sexually Assaulted at Work |last=Fiorello |first=Victor |publisher=[[Philadelphia (magazine)|Phillymag]]z |date=2017-09-14 |accessdate=2022-04-20 |archive-date=2022-08-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220814122112/https://www.phillymag.com/news/2017/09/14/hooters-waitress-sexually-assaulted-northeast/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The lawsuit named the employee, three former managers at the Northeast Philadelphia Hooters restaurant where she worked, and ''Hooters of America, LLC et al at'' as defendants.<ref name=philly2017/><ref name=velezlawsuit/> As of July 2020, the outcome of the case was still pending.<ref name=velezlawsuit/>

On July 16, 2019, Scott Peterson, who was one of two men who alleged they were sexually harassed by a male boss while working for Hooters in the Los Angeles area, reached a settlement with the restaurant chain in the [[Los Angeles Superior Court]], though terms of the settlement were not publicly revealed.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/hooters-sexual-harassment-male-waiters-sue/77938/ |title=Settlement Reached in Hooters Sexual Harassment Lawsuit |publisher=KNBC |date=2019-08-12 |accessdate=2022-04-20 |archive-date=2022-02-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220223211034/https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/hooters-sexual-harassment-male-waiters-sue/77938/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The other plaintiff, Paul "PJ" Cagnina, obtained a settlement in May 2017.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/story/2019-08-13/biz-news-hooters-lawsuit |title=Biz News: Man who sued Hooters alleging sexual harassment reaches settlement |author=Daily Pilot |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=2019-08-13 |accessdate=2022-04-20 |archive-date=2022-04-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420221037/https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/story/2019-08-13/biz-news-hooters-lawsuit |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Legal status===
In [[employment discrimination law in the United States]], employers are generally allowed to consider characteristics that would otherwise be discriminatory if they are [[bona fide occupational qualification|''bona fide'' occupational qualifications]] (BFOQ). For example, a manufacturer of men's clothing may lawfully advertise exclusively for male models. Hooters has argued a BFOQ defense, which applies when the "essence of the business operation would be undermined if the business eliminated its discriminatory policy".<ref name='fox'/>

==Marketing==
===Charitable activities===
Hooters has actively supported charities through its '''Hooters Community Endowment Fund''', also known as '''HOO.C.E.F.''', a play on [[UNICEF]]. It has provided money and/or volunteers to charities such as [[Habitat for Humanity International|Habitat for Humanity]], The V Foundation for Cancer Research, Operation Homefront, [[Make-A-Wish Foundation]], [[Special Olympics]], [[Muscular Dystrophy Association]] and [[Stop Hunger Now]].<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.hooters.com/news_and_events/news/2005/2005-08-25_Habitat.asp |title=Hooters Girls Working with Habitat for Humanity |publisher=Hooters.com |date=2005-08-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050923093855/http://hooters.com/news_and_events/news/2005/2005-08-25_Habitat.asp |archive-date=2005-09-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Morabito |first=Greg |title=Hooters Helps Haiti in Super Bowl Sunday |url=http://eater.com/archives/2010/01/28/hooter-for-haiti.php |website=Eater.com |date=2010-01-28 |access-date=2010-01-30 |archive-date=2011-07-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726215238/http://eater.com/archives/2010/01/28/hooter-for-haiti.php |url-status=live}}</ref> In addition, after the 2007 death of Kelly Jo Dowd, a former Hooters Girl, Hooters calendar cover girl and later restaurant general manager, Hooters began a campaign in support of [[breast cancer]] research, with awareness of the issue being spread through the Kelly Jo Dowd Fund. By 2010 the chain raised over $2&nbsp;million for the cause.<ref>Brandau, Mark. [http://nrn.com/article/restaurants-raise-funds-help-fight-breast-cancer "Restaurants raise funds to help fight breast cancer"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011062619/http://nrn.com/article/restaurants-raise-funds-help-fight-breast-cancer |date=2012-10-11}}. Nation's Restaurant News. October 12, 2010</ref>

In 2009, Hooters partnered with Operation Homefront to establish The Valentine Fund in honor of fallen soldier [[United States Special Operations Command|SOCS]] Thomas J. Valentine. The fund supports the families of [[US Special Forces]] service members and other military families. Thomas J. Valentine, a [[Navy SEAL]] Senior Chief Petty Officer, was killed during a training exercise February 13, 2008. He left behind his wife, Christina, and two young children. Hooters established a fund in Valentine's name through Operation Homefront.<ref>[http://www.operationhomefront.net/supporters.aspx?id=1788&FolderId=1087&Sf=Supporter "Gold Supporters"]. Operation Homefront. Retrieved January 26, 2012. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130922212158/http://www.operationhomefront.net/supporters.aspx?id=1788&FolderId=1087&Sf=Supporter |date=2013-09-22}}</ref><ref>[http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orlando-hooters-to-support-tom-valentine-fund-and-military-through-15-mile-hooters-run-across-the-city-88682732.html "Orlando Hooters to Support Tom Valentine Fund and Military through 15 Mile Hooters Run Across the City"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421082823/http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orlando-hooters-to-support-tom-valentine-fund-and-military-through-15-mile-hooters-run-across-the-city-88682732.html |date=2014-04-21}}. PR Newswire. Retrieved January 26, 2012.</ref>

===Athletics and promotions===
Hooters is involved in the sports world. Previous sponsorships include the [[Miami Hooters]], a now defunct [[Arena Football League]] team. Hooters formerly sponsored the [[USAR Hooters Pro Cup]], an automobile racing series, and the [[NGA Pro Golf Tour]], a minor league golf tour.

[[File:Milwaukee Mile August 2023 4 (Alan Kulwicki's No. 7 Hooters Ford Thunderbird).jpg|thumb|[[Alan Kulwicki]]'s No. 7 Hooters [[Ford Thunderbird]]]]

In 1992, Hooters sponsored [[NASCAR]] driver [[Alan Kulwicki]] as he won the [[Winston Cup]] Championship, beating [[Bill Elliott]] by ten points, the closest margin in NASCAR prior to [[Chase for the Sprint Cup|The Chase]] era. On April 1, 1993, Kulwicki, along with several others including Hooters Chairman Bob Brooks' son Mark, were killed in a [[Alan Kulwicki plane crash|plane crash]] near [[Bristol, Tennessee]]. They were flying back to the [[Bristol Motor Speedway|track]] for Sunday's race after making a sponsor appearance at a Hooters in [[Knoxville, Tennessee]]. Hooters remained in the sport, sponsoring drivers like [[Loy Allen Jr.]], [[Rick Mast]] and [[Brett Bodine]] before ending their involvement in 2003. The restaurant returned to NASCAR in 2007 to sponsor a [[Craftsman Truck Series]] team led by [[Jason White (American racing driver)|Jason White]], [[Derrike Cope]] and [[Brad Keselowski]]. Six years later, Hooters sponsored [[Nationwide Series]] driver [[Nelson Piquet Jr.]]'s car.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pennell |first=Jay |url=http://www.foxsports.com/nascar/shake-and-bake/hooters-returns-to-nascar-with-nelson-piquet-jr-091413 |title=Hooters Returns To NASCAR With Nelson Piquet Jr. |work=[[Foxsports.com]] |date=2013-09-14 |access-date=2017-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202105200/http://www.foxsports.com/nascar/shake-and-bake/hooters-returns-to-nascar-with-nelson-piquet-jr-091413 |archive-date=2017-02-02 |url-status=dead}}</ref> For the [[2016 Bojangles' Southern 500]] at [[Darlington Raceway]], Hooters made a comeback in the Cup Series with a one-off paint scheme for [[Greg Biffle]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Larson |first=Mike |url=http://autoweek.com/article/nascar-sprint-cup/nascar-driver-greg-biffle-will-partner-hooters-throwback-paint-scheme |title=NASCAR's Greg Biffle will partner with Hooters for throwback paint scheme |magazine=[[Autoweek]] |date=2016-08-24 |access-date=2017-01-25}}</ref> Hooters currently sponsors the No. 9 of [[Chase Elliott]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2017/1/23/chase-elliott-sponsored-by-hooters-beginning-in-2017.html |title=Hooters To Sponsor Chase Elliott Beginning In 2017 |website=[[NASCAR]] |date=2017-01-23 |access-date=2017-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170125161110/http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2017/1/23/chase-elliott-sponsored-by-hooters-beginning-in-2017.html |archive-date=2017-01-25 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Hooters has sponsored the [[Major League Eating]]-sanctioned "Hooters Worldwide Wing Eating Championship" since 2012.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.hooters.com/press-release/joey-jaws-chestnut-devours-194-hooters-chicken-wings-10-minutes-reclaims-hooters-world |title=Joey "Jaws" Chestnut Devours 194 Hooters Chicken Wings in 10 Minutes, Reclaims Hooters Worldwide Wing Eating Title |access-date=2016-12-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202043706/http://news.hooters.com/press-release/joey-jaws-chestnut-devours-194-hooters-chicken-wings-10-minutes-reclaims-hooters-world |archive-date=2017-02-02}}</ref> Hooters has also licensed its name for the ''[[Hooters Road Trip]]'' [[PlayStation]] racing game. Furthermore, Hooters licensed the Hooters Calendar for ''Hooters Calendar Girl'', a mobile wallpaper application, and ''Hooters Calendar Girl Tubin''', a [[mobile game]], both by [[Oasys Mobile]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oasysmobile.com/products/hooters.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080122005054/http://www.oasysmobile.com/products/hooters.html |url-status=dead |title=Hooters Calendar Girl |archive-date=2008-01-22 |website=oasysmobile.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://dedomil.net/games/4082/screen/11 |title=Hooters Calendar Girls Tubin |website=dedomil.net |date=2005-07-11 |access-date=2022-02-02 |archive-date=2022-02-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202230318/http://dedomil.net/games/4082/screen/11 |url-status=live}}</ref> It was also one of several real world brands that appeared in the 2011 video game ''[[Homefront (video game)|Homefront]]''.

Since 1986, the restaurant has issued a calendar featuring Hooters Girls, with signings taking place in some of their restaurants. Since 1996, Hooters has held Miss Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant, a competition of Hooters Girls from around the world; in 2010, this event took place in [[Hollywood, Florida]]. An African-American woman won the Miss Hooters pageant for the first time in 2010: LeAngela Davis of [[Columbus, Ohio]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.lalate.com/2010/07/11/leangela-davis-hooters-swimsuit-pageant-2010-winner/ |title=LeAngela Davis Hooters Swimsuit Pageant 2010 WINNER! |website=news.lalate.com |date=2010-07-11 |access-date=2013-10-06 |archive-date=2014-09-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911154719/http://news.lalate.com/2010/07/11/leangela-davis-hooters-swimsuit-pageant-2010-winner/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Criticism==
{{Expand section|date=June 2023}}

Hooters has been criticized for [[Sexual objectification|objectifying]] women.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.gq.com/story/is-there-a-place-for-hooters-in-2018 |title=Is There a Place for Hooters in 2018? |last=Saxena |first=Jaya |date=2018-06-19 |magazine=[[GQ]] |accessdate=2018-09-18 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129141001/https://www.gq.com/story/is-there-a-place-for-hooters-in-2018 |archivedate=2020-11-29}}</ref> However, others have argued that [[feminism]] is about having choice and that being able to work as a woman in whichever industry the individual woman in question chooses along with the ability for women to make their own money is empowering.<ref>{{cite news |last= Flaherty |first= Jess |date= 26 November 2022 |title= The world's biggest Hooters is open in Liverpool with wings, tiny shorts and a dash of feminism |url= https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/food-drink-news/worlds-biggest-hooters-open-liverpool-25609232 |work= [[Liverpool Echo]] |access-date= 21 August 2023}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[AK Racing]]
* [[Betel nut beauty]]
* [[Bikini barista]]
* [[Breastaurant]]
* [[Café con piernas]]
* [[Karen's Diner]]
* [[Maid café]]
* [[Raisins (South Park)]] — parody episode
* [[Tilted Kilt]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Hooters}}
* {{Official website|https://www.hooters.com/}}
* [http://www.hooters.com/Company/ About Hooters]&nbsp;– the Atlanta-based chain's information page
* [http://www.originalhooters.com/ Original Hooters]&nbsp;– the Clearwater-based founders sub-chain
* [http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2001/03/19/daily46.html Transfer of "Hooters" brand from Clearwater to Atlanta], a March 2001 article from ''[[Atlanta Business Chronicle]]''
* [http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0414061hooters1.html Sexual Harassment Retaliation Lawsuit], from [[The Smoking Gun]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070202040348/http://www.hooters.com/Hooters-Fortune-9-2003.pdf Fortune Magazine feature on Hooters]
* [http://www.phuketscene.com/1/post/2014/04/hooters-all-set-to-open-in-phuket-thailand.html Hooters All Set To Open In Phuket Thailand]

{{Atlanta companies}}
{{Chicken chains}}
{{Food chains in Australia}}
{{Restaurant chains in Ireland}}
{{Food chains in Taiwan}}
{{Food chains in the United Kingdom}}
{{Fast-food chains of the United States}}
{{Portal bar|Companies|Food|Human sexuality|Society|Florida|Georgia (U.S. state)|United States}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Hooters| ]]
[[Category:1983 establishments in Florida]]
[[Category:2010 mergers and acquisitions]]
[[Category:2019 mergers and acquisitions]]
[[Category:Companies based in Atlanta]]
[[Category:Companies based in Clearwater, Florida]]
[[Category:Poultry restaurants]]
[[Category:Private equity portfolio companies]]
[[Category:Privately held companies based in Florida]]
[[Category:Privately held companies based in Georgia (U.S. state)]]
[[Category:Restaurant chains in the United States]]
[[Category:Restaurants established in 1983]]
[[Category:Restaurants in Florida]]
[[Category:Theme restaurants]]
[[Category:Restaurant franchises]]
{{Навигационная таблица/Портал/Английская Википедия}}
[[Категория:Английская Википедия]]
[[Категория:Википедия]]
[[Категория:Статья из Википедии]]
[[Категория:Статья из Английской Википедии]]