The Hard Rock Café (HRC) and Hard Rock Hotels/Casinos are a series of highly successful ventures offering fun, music, food, nostalgia and drinks. HRC is also famous for its music collectibles, including guitars used by industry icons (e.g. Madonna, Jimi Hendrix, etc.), fashion items, live concerts and Hard Rock Live performance venues. The first Hard Rock Café opened on June 14, 1971 in London, England. Founded by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton, HRC became famous and successful almost immediately. Tigrett opened HRC in New York, Boston, Washington DC, Dallas, Orlando, Paris and Berlin, while Morton developed HRC in Chicago, Houston, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Various acquisitions were made, starting with "Mecca" which acquired Tigrett and then The Rank Group which acquired Mecca. In time Mecca acquired Hard Rock America from Peter Morton, "consolidating worldwide control of the brand," Hard Rock's website explains. ¹None of these consolidations and acquisitions are of any interest to the millions of satisfied customers who simply enjoy the atmosphere and music of HRC around the world. The company website calls the HRC experience a “truly global phenomenon.” There are currently around 130 HRCs on the planet, including in places like Shanghai and Kuala Kumpur. HRC claims to have more than 70,000 pieces in its collection, including Bob Dylan's motorcycle and Elvis Presley's rifle. The theme of HRC is obviously rock music, but once inside a store the customer has the opportunity to explore the history of rock and roll, the roots of the music, some of the early pioneers whose names are not well known, and more. Staying true to the original motif and theme is one of HRC's hallmarks. “C...... middle of paper......ndinguniverse.com.6- Johnny Rockets (2009).http://www.johnnyrockets.com7- Planet Hollywood. (2009).1http://www.planethollywood.com8- Hard rock internationalhttp://www.microsoft.com/casestudies/Case_Study_Detail.aspx?casestudyid=40000024329- Hard Rock Cafe Casehttp://www.oppapers.com/essays /Hard-Rock-Cafe-Case-Study/154227 www.kitejunkies.com/images/hard-rock-01.gif http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Tigrett http://www.aviconpartners .com/pdfs/news/HardRock.pdf http://faculty.unlv.edu/kleong/SCM352PowerPoint_files/Chapter%2002%20Operations%20Strategy%207th%20Ed%202009.pdf http://www.slideshare.net /knksmart/introduction-471248 MacLaurin, Donald J ., & MacLaurin, Tanya L. (2000). Customer perceptions of theme restaurants in Singapore. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant AdministrationQuarterly. 41(3), 75-85.