KFC / 1974
How fried chicken found a place at Christmas
1:28 / A short film by Chirag SpeaksWatch on YouTube
Japan had Christmas lights, parties and celebrations. KFC offered a specific answer to another question: what should we eat? This film follows the Kentucky for Christmas campaign and how a brand found a place in a holiday people were making their own.
The question to take with you
When people ask what they are supposed to do, could your brand give them an answer they want to repeat?
A closer look at the history
A meal joins an existing celebration.
KFC dates its nationwide Kentucky for Christmas campaign to 1974. Its own history describes Christmas parties and seasonal celebrations that were already taking place in Japan.
The company did not invent Christmas in Japan. The story is how a restaurant helped build a particular meal into the way many people celebrate it.
Read the film transcript
From the published film, with caption spelling corrected. The history notes above provide additional context.
December 1970, Japan's streets are shifting with American brands like Baskin-Robbins, Mister Donut, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Inside that first KFC, a foreigner walks in on Christmas frustrated that he can't find a proper Christmas dinner. The manager, Takeshi Okawara, realizes that Japan loves the Christmas spirit with trees, lights, and romance, but tradition needs ritual, and no one knows the rules yet. So, he decides to write them.
Welcome back to the Stories They Told: How Brands Have Shaped the World, episode 8. In 1974, KFC launched Kentucky for Christmas across Japan. Ads showed families gathered around golden fried chicken as My Old Country Home played in the background. The message was clear: This is how Americans celebrate Christmas.
This is the tradition. It wasn't, but Okawara understood what people really needed: permission to make the holiday feel complete. KFC created party barrels, festive packaging, and told families to order weeks in advance. Lines began forming days before, and the Colonel traded in his white suit for red.
Today, over 3 million Japanese families eat KFC on Christmas Eve. Okawara realized that Japanese families wanted to fit in with American culture, and the best way was through shared rituals like Christmas. But new rituals meant social uncertainty. What am I supposed to do?
In these moments, people don't look for opinions, they look for instructions on the safest way to avoid the fear of missing out on the moment. I don't need the best answer, I need one that will help me belong. I'm Chirag, the Brand Historian, and in our next story, we'll learn how a tire company became the most powerful judge in fine dining.
Where would you like to go next?
