CKE Restaurants' CEO Andrew F. Puzder Talks to The Wall Street Transcript.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 25, 2002

The Wall Street Transcript has published an in-depth interview with Andrew Puzder, President and CEO of CKE Restaurants (NYSE:CKR), in which he talks at length about the company's future.

The entire 2,400-word interview is available free online at http://www.twst.com/ceos.htm

Puzder gives an overview of the company. "CKE is really two principal brands: Carl's Jr., which is on the West Coast, but principally in California; and Hardee's, which is in the Midwest and the Southeast. Carl's Jr. was started by Carl Karcher, who bought a hot dog cart in 1941 in Los Angeles, California, and grew that business to where it became public in 1981. Hardee's was started by Wilbur Hardee back in Greenville, North Carolina, in 1961."

Puzder explains, "The strength of the Hardee's and Carl's Jr. brands, the strength of our management team, and our direction, which is to fix this company for the long term, not to try and make it look good for a quarter, or even to look good for a particular year. We're going to build something slowly and steadily that we can sustain with two very strong brands and with a good management team. I think if you focus on that, you can't go wrong."

Looking forward, Puzder states, "We've really strengthened ourselves over the past 18 months. We recently announced that we've refinanced our line of credit and obtained a $100 million line of credit with five of our existing banks. We're feeling pretty good about the future."

This interview is part of a 222-page Roth Capital Partners 14th Annual Growth Stock Conference Issue available at http://www.twst.com/info/info493.htm or by calling 212/952-7433

The Wall Street Transcript does not endorse the views of any interviewees nor does it make stock recommendations. For subscription information call 800/246-7673.