KFC is getting an unexpected boost from Trevor Noah's love of breakfast chicken
AP Photo/John Minchillo
- KFC's "eat fried chicken for breakfast" campaign with Trevor Noah seems to be boosting sales.
- The campaign, which was launched in South Africa, has lead to strong sales growth, as noted in Yum Brand's earnings call Wednesday.
- KFC same store sales rose 13%, adding a huge boost to Yum Brands' overall sales.
Fried chicken for breakfast seems to be boosting KFCs international growth.
Yum Brand's, which owns KFC, attributed strong sales in South Africa to a chicken campaign with comedian Trevor Noah during the company's earnings call on Wednesday.
In the light-hearted commercial, Noah dives down a conspiracy theory rabbit hole bout how chicken fell out of favor as a breakfast dish. Since the "eat chicken for breakfast" campaign launched in South Africa in April, sales have had a strong growth in the market — and helped boost overall sales for Yum, the company said.
This quarter Yum, which also owns Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, same-store sales rose 9%. KFC, which makes up half of Yum's profits, was largely credited for that boost.
Internationally, KFC experienced a growth in sales: While KFC same-store sales in the US grew 5%, same-store sales grew 15% globally, with a noticeable recovery in sales in China and expansions in newer markets, including the Middle East and South Africa.
In the US, new product offerings bumped up sales. The brand recently launched chicken nuggets to expand the brand's off-the-bone offerings. And chicken fans responded: In the first eight weeks of the product's launch, over 100 million nuggets were sold. KFC's fried chicken wrap promotion was also a success when launched last quarter drawing in low-income consumers looking to cut back on expenses.