Some countries have turkey at their Christmas table, some have pork, others have fish. Japan however, is an exception to the whole home comfort food. Because Japanese eat KFC on Christmas day.
Yes, you’ve read that right, KFC.
Christmas isn’t a national holiday in Japan since only 1% of the Japanese population are Christians. But a bucket of KFC or, as they call it, “Christmas Chicken” will be the go-to meal on the big day. And it’s all thanks to the insanely successful “Kurisumasu ni wa kentakkii!” (Kentucky for Christmas!) marketing campaign back in 1974. Here’s the story. (the article continues after the ad)
It all started when a group of foreigners couldn’t find turkey on Christmas day and opted for fried chicken instead. Clever marketers at KFC saw this as a prime commercial opportunity and launched their first Christmas meal that year: Chicken and wine for 2,920 yen($10), which was pretty pricey for the mid-70s. Today, the christmas chicken dinner (which now boasts cake and champagne) goes for about 3,336 yen ($40).
And the people come in droves. Many order their boxes of “finger lickin” holiday cheer months in advance to avoid the lines—some as long as two hours!
If you like what you read, then you will definitely love this one: ‘Decoy Effect’: How Marketers Alter Your Preferences And Trick You Into Spending More Money
Source: www.smithsonianmag.com
Main photo of the article: Independent.co.uk
