The Colonel gets a makeover
TEXT OF STORY
SCOTT JAGOW: Colonel Sanders was a real chef and KFC wants everybody to remember that. Today, it’s making some changes to the Colonel and to the company name. Here’s Bob Moon:
BOB MOON: Besides the new logo that puts its famous founder Colonel Sanders in a red apron, KFC is unveiling a worldwide redesign of its restaurants using a not-so-new marketing approach.
Signs will emphasize the Kentucky Fried Chicken name and stress the old “Finger Lickin’ Good” slogan.
Northwestern marketing professor Tim Calkins thinks KFC is trying to recapture what it lost when it adopted its abbreviated name in the early 1990s.
TIM CALKINS:“They made the brand a little flatter, a little less different. And in this world, you’ve gotta be different, you’ve gotta be distinctive.”
What sets the chain apart, he says, has always been its Kentucky Fried product.
CALKINS:“Now they’re saying, ‘It is chicken, and it is chicken that tastes really good. They’re cutting back to their roots. I think that’s a smart idea.”
In branding, he says, using old and familiar ingredients makes for a good recipe.
In Los Angeles, I’m Bob Moon for Marketplace.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
