How KFC made Christmas all about fried chicken — in Japan

• KFC has become a Christmas tradition in Japan.
• This is largely thanks to Takeshi Okawara, who managed the first KFC restaurant in Japan.
• These days, Japanese people could end up waiting in long lines if they don't pre-order their Christmas meals from KFC.

While Christmas in the US may conjure up visions of sugarplums and holiday hams, in Japan a certain fast-food staple takes center stage — and it's all thanks to a clever marketing ploy by KFC. 

Over the last four decades, KFC has managed to make fried chicken synonymous with Christmas in the country.

An estimated 3.6 million Japanese families eat KFC during the Christmas season, reported the BBC. Millions of people weather long lines to order fried chicken weeks in advance to carry on the tradition.

Here's a look back at how KFC became a Christmas tradition in Japan. 

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KFC's Christmas promotion was the brainchild of Takeshi Okawara, who managed the first KFC restaurant in Japan. He would go on to become CEO of Kentucky Fried Chicken Japan from 1984 to 2002.

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Here's the BBC article on KFC's Christmas marketing in Japan. 

Just a few months after the first KFC opened in Japan in 1970, Okawara had the idea to sell a Christmas "party barrel," inspired by the elaborate American turkey dinner, but with fried chicken instead of turkey.

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The promotion went national in Japan in 1974 under the name Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii: Kentucky for Christmas.

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