ctible items themselves. The company went public in 1990, when several acquisitions resulted in all of the Hard Rock foreign operations being brought into one company. Merchandising was expanded, and during the 1990s, the company also expanded its operations to include casinos, a hotel in Las Vegas, and clubs. Today, Hard Rock operates more than 108 restaurants in more than 41 countries ("History," 2002).
In 1991, Robert Earl--a former CEO of Hard Rock--opened the first Planet Hollywood restaurant in Manhattan; in the following four years, the chain grew to 28 outlets with locations from Honolulu to Helsinki. Each time a new restaurant opened, some of the more famous owners, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Demi Moore, Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone, were part of the opening festivities. Inside the restaurant, which featured burgers, chili and similar fare, diners sat among props from movies and were able to purchase Planet Hollywood merchandise, including jackets and baseball caps; in some locations, the merchandise was available well before the restaurant opens for business. The result was that the restaurant chain posted significant profits in an industry typically characterized by low profit margins, and an initial public offering was favorably greeted on Wall Street. By 2003, however, Planet Hollywood had fallen on hard times. The company declared bankruptcy early in the 2000s, and in late 2002, a bankruptcy judge allowed the company to file a reorganization plan. Today, the company is a greatly reduced subset of its former self ("Restaurant Locations," 2003).
Both Hard Rock CafT and Planet Hollywood had similar strategies and business models. Both began as themed restaurants that featured casual American food at moderate prices. One focused on the movie industry, which has plenty of cachet, while the other focused on the music industry. Both of these industries have plenty of memorabilia to use as dTcor in r...