KFC is moving its US headquarters from Louisville, Kentucky to Plano, Texas. The company made the announcement via parent Yum Brands. It’s part of a larger restructuring effort to streamline business and collaboration between brands.
About 100 corporate employees and several remote workers will have to relocate, with Yum Brands covering the cost. KFC and Pizza Hut will now be based in Plano, while Taco Bell and Habit Burger & Grill will stay in Irvine, California.
Texas has been luring big companies with lower taxes and business-friendly policies. Yum Brands CEO David Gibbs said the move “puts us in a position for long term growth and will help us serve our customers, employees, franchisees and shareholders better.” 
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear was disappointed, pointing out KFC’s deep roots in the state. “The company’s name starts with Kentucky and it has used our state’s heritage and culture to sell its product,” Beshear said.
KFC was founded in the 1930s when Colonel Harland Sanders sold fried chicken at a service station in Corbin, Kentucky. Today the brand has over 24,000 restaurants in more than 145 countries with Sanders’ face still a global icon of the brand.
This is part of a larger trend of companies moving to Texas with cities like Austin and Dallas benefiting from the state’s business climate according to a CBRE real estate report.
