KFC once again transformed the customer experience and established a new commercial model.
At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2023, KFC Re:Store was awarded a bronze in the Creative Commerce Lions!!!
STRATEGY
For Gen Z, there is no disconnect between the real and virtual. Virtual status, friends and hangouts are as valuable as real ones. Brands that thrive in the metaverse blur the boundaries, connecting their audiences’ needs with the codes and culture of Web 3.0.
Working with a Gen Z creative team, we learned how to show up authentically in their world:
BRING THE SWAG
Virtual bragging rights matter as much as real world style and swagger. We needed to craft virtual assets that would deliver credibility and desirability.
MAKE IT SOCIAL
Just like a real KFC store we needed to design an experience where users would want to hang out, spend time and connect with friends.
KEEP IT SEAMLESS
It was essential the virtual store delivered real world sales-but the last things gamers want are interruptions. We needed to connect the two as effortlessly as possible.
SOLUTION
Using Unreal Engine 4, the Re:Store combines traditional Chinese design and cutting edge technology, launched on 27th July 2022 within QQ, China’s most popular platform for younger users.
WE MADE IT SOCIAL
Users could dance, play, hang out with friends and a virtual Colonel Saunders.
Within five weeks, we had 19 million visitors and 4.3 billion interactions. 850 million chats with Colonel Sanders took place, with over 6 million virtual selfies.
THE SWAG WAS A HIT
We created virtual clothing, virtual furniture, a virtual pet named Fengwan and of course virtual KFC meals. We even created our own currency, KFC Chicken Coins - another first for the platform.
In just three days, 30 million Chicken Coins were distributed. In five weeks, 6,690,000 items of virtual clothing have sold.
WE’RE MAKING IT SEAMLESS
180 million virtual KFC food items have sold in five weeks, but what matters most is turning the virtual store into a real world revenue driver.
Vouchers from the Re:Store can be redeemed in the physical store and vice versa.
In a world first for the platform, users can order in the metaverse and have their order delivered in the real world.
This revolutionary borderless commerce approach is in Beta today and launches to all in July, establishing a new commercial model for brands in the QQ platform.
BUSINESS IMPACT
We created a completely new retail concept within the metaverse, building powerful relationships with customers who are no longer visiting our real world stores.
Almost 7M pieces of virtual clothing, 11M items of virtual furniture and 180M virtual KFC food items were sold.
But our ambition is for a virtual store that drives real world sales.
Re:Store as a fully shoppable experience, will give KFC a unique retail footprint in one of the world’s largest economies, serving one of the world’s largest populations. A store with a footprint, and an energized customer base unimaginable in the real world. KFC once again transforming the customer experience and establishing a new commercial model.
What’s more, the Re:Store is already driving offline sales. Every August KFC launch the "CP Burger," a key promotional moment. By promoting it in the Re:Store we drove sales 5 x faster than previous years.
Who says play can’t be big business for the biggest brands on the planet?
Chris Chen, Chief Creative Officer at DENTSU CREATIVE China said: “This is also the second time we bring home Creative Commerce Lions. Our clients and us agencies never stop reimagining the possibilities of creating more consumption occasions in retail, while keep innovating to communicate with the next gen of consumers. By working with dentsu Z and using their insights into young communities, KFC creative team learned where to find the next generation of consumers in a decentralised media landscape, and how brands can communicate with them authentically in their world - and eventually drive business impact. We are happy 'KFC Re:Store' has made it, by creating another KFC hub for the young people to socialise, meet and play at."
BRAND
KFC
CREATIVE AGENCY
DENTSU CREATIVE China
PRODUCTION
TiMi Studio Group
MEDIA
Tencent Advertising
Shanghai Gaoding Culture Communication Co.,Ltd
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