How can the pizza be perfected? Ditch the dough crust and go with chicken instead.
At least that’s the plan that KFC is tinkering with in the Philippines, where the restaurant chain earlier this month has debuted a chicken dish that also serves as the base for a pizza of sorts.
What’s the business rationale for such dishes? Well, they often generate a ton of media buzz, as well as adulation and horror on social media among diners that can’t wait to try the new dish or those that are horrified by the concept.
KFC owner Yum Brands (YUM), which also owns the Taco Bell and Pizza Hut chains, has also established a reputation for delivering hybrid food offerings. Last month, for example, Pizza Hut debuted a pizza with a pigs-in-a-blanket crust. Taco Bell has experimented Doritos-flavored shells, though as Bloomberg as pointed out, the sales jolt from that innovation has since ebbed. That’s because many of these wacky food innovations only generate short-term buzz and are rarely long term, sustainable hits.
But whatever KFC is doing, it is working. During fiscal 2014, total system sales leapt 6% while operating profit was up 13%. Those figures outperformed Yum’s Pizza Hut and Taco Bell divisions.
Here’s the tweet announcing the menu item:
Have you ever thought of having chicken as a crust to your favorite pizza? We did. So here's the new #KFChizza! Pic.twitter.com/nXZm9Skt15
— KFC Philippines (@KFCPhilippines) July 4, 2015