KFC is on a mission to “change perceptions and change habits” as it introduces its new speciality drinks range across UK stores.
The fast-food chain is investing £37m in its new ‘Kwench by KFC’ drinks range, in a bid to expand appeal among Gen Z consumers and reach people across different dayparts.
KFC is on a mission to “change perceptions and change habits”, with the launch of its new speciality drinks range across UK stores.
The fast-food chain is investing £37m in ‘Kwench by KFC’ as it looks to expand appeal among Gen Z consumers and reach people across different dayparts.
“Kwench is about finding new moments, new occasions for customers to come in and enjoy the KFC experience,” KFC UK and Ireland strategy and innovation director, Leo Sloley tells Marketing Week.
As a chicken brand, KFC mostly appeals to customers in the afternoon or evening, for lunch and dinner; however, with the drinks range, the aim is to drive expansion of the brand across other times of day.
“It’s about connecting with more customers outside of one occasion,” says Sloley, speaking about the goals of the launch. “So, we’re going to look for people to come to us outside of mealtimes.”
Kwench will be a success when we start to change those customer perceptions around KFC and become famous for our drinks as well as our fried chicken.
Leo Sloley, KFC
Having built its fame through fried chicken, KFC is now faced with the challenge of getting consumers to think about its brand outside of the occasions it is best associated with.
“Right now, today, when people think of KFC, people don’t think of drinks,” Sloley says. “Actually, the biggest challenge we have here is around changing perceptions, changing habits.”
The brand is confident in the quality and appeal of the drinks range it is launching, but its task will be to drive visibility, awareness and trial of the offering, Sloley notes.
“Kwench will be a success when we start to change those customer perceptions around KFC and become famous for our drinks as well as our fried chicken,” he says.
That is not something that will happen “overnight”, he says, but something that the brand is prepared to invest behind overtime.
Driving brand relevance
It’s valuable for any brand to expand its appeal into different occasions and broaden the times when consumers might buy into its offer. But Kwench is also designed to help KFC stay “60 years young”, says Sloley.
“What we’re excited about is, actually, Kwench can help us stay relevant as a brand overall,” he says.
KFC sees speciality drinks as an increasing consumer trend, and one it is keen to tap into.
“Drinks are becoming more of a main event and less of a side order,” Sloley says.
The drinks range, which consists of boba tea, lemonades, shakes and iced coffees, is particularly relevant to younger consumers, he believes, with KFC aiming to be “the fastest growing restaurant for the next generation”.
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“That’s so important for us in our future growth, to look after our future customers,” Sloley says, adding that Kwench is exactly the answer to do that.
The goal of reaching younger generations for KFC is not just brought to life through Kwench, but through much of what the brand does. For example, it taps into youth-focused trends on social media, Sloley says, while its innovation and overall marketing agenda are also focused on how the brand can reach younger consumers.
“I think the biggest risk is not thinking about them, not being relevant to the next generation,” Sloley says.
At the same time, the brand is conscious of staying true to itself, he notes. KFC is a brand for everyone and must balance resonating with a new generation while staying true to what makes it KFC.
Driving brand fit
KFC is not currently known for serving speciality drinks, but Sloley says there is “a lot of shared values” between the new range and the chicken offering.
“Just like the chicken, Kwench is handcrafted, it’s made to order in restaurant,” he says. “I think that really fits our KFC brand.”
The range is also designed to go well with fried chicken, he notes, adding that the brand has a phrase that it wants consumers to “come for the drinks and stay for the chicken”.
The brand designed the range of drinks intentionally, picking the four categories to ensure Kwench offers variety and quality for consumers
“This was never going to be about, ‘let’s just put boba on the menu and hope for the best’. It’s been really intentional that we feel we’ve got the right drinks that are really relevant for our customers,” he says.
Looking to the future, KFC has the intention of continuing to innovate on the Kwench range.
“We’re looking at long-term innovation,” Sloley says. “We’re already working on a pipeline for what’s next in 2027 so, I think we know that this is going to be a long-term game.”