Weeks after Hooters of America filed for bankruptcy, the brand could be close to getting a lifeline from a longtime fan: the wrestling legend Hulk Hogan.
Real American Beer, a brand Hogan founded in 2024, plans to submit a bid for Hooters’ intellectual property soon, a person familiar with the company’s plans told Business Insider.
If a bid was successful, it would allow Hogan and Real American Beer to create Hooters-branded merchandise, such as food and beverages, that it could distribute at restaurants, including Hooters locations, as well as at retailers and entertainment and gaming venues, the person said.
Real American could license the Hooters name back to the restaurants under the potential deal, this person said. Hogan’s company isn’t interested in acquiring or operating the restaurants, they added.
The bid would need to be approved by the parties overseeing Hooters’ bankruptcy. The person familiar with the plan declined to say how much the bid would be worth, but said it would be an all-cash offer. The deal is in flux, and terms and potential buyers could change.
Hooters of America, one of two companies that operate Hooters restaurants in the US, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March. The company is owned by the private equity firms Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors.
Hooters of America’s restaurants are still open during the bankruptcy process. The company plans to sell some of its locations to franchisees who opened the first locations in the 1980s.
Hogan and Hooters have a relationship going back decades.
The chain’s founders opened its first location in Clearwater, Florida — the same city where Hogan was born and raised. It’s also where Hogan raised his family, and he still owns houses and attends church in the area.
Hogan also appeared at one of the restaurant chain’s locations last year to film a stunt where he threw the TikToker Frankie Lapenna into a table, complete with a tablecloth featuring the chain’s logo.
Hooters was also one of the first places that Real American distributed its beer after launching in 2024.
“Hooters has always been a big part of his life,” the person familiar with Real American Beer’s plans told BI.
If a bid is successful, Real American Beer could distribute Hooters products using the same distributors it already uses for its beer. Real American distributes beer at Walmart in 28 states, as well as at supermarkets including Albertsons.
While his brand might not be interested in Hooters’ locations, Hogan does have restaurant experience. He oversees Hogan’s Hangout, a restaurant near the beach in Clearwater.
In the 1990s, he also opened a now-defunct restaurant called Pastamania in the Mall of America in Minneapolis.
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