Why Is KFC Selling Pizza?

Chicken + Pizza = Chizza. Similar to KFC's 'Double Down' - a limited edition burger where the buns are replaced with fried chicken fillets (yes, that's a real thing) - the 'Chizza' has been an international hit for the fast food chain. A chicken fillet 'pizza base', topped with sauce, cheese and pepperoni, it's the stuff of dreams for some - and presumably, a thing of nightmares for Italians worldwide.

But now, for the first time, KFC has brought Chizza home to the US, with some help from creative agency MullenLowe. Starting February 26th, the special item has hit American KFC menus, accompanied by some finger-lickin' spots across TV, digital and social, starring viral TikTok star Bad Granny.

However, Colonel-and-crew took things one step further, opening a 'Chizzeria' at one of its locations in New York City's East Village. From February 23rd to 24th, this one-of-a-kind pop-up served just one thing – hot, fresh Chizza – for free. And as well as this hybrid menu item, the pop-up also dished out some sweet pizzeria-inspired merch, designed by Morning Breath Inc..

Stepping into the kitchen to see how this campaign was cooked up, LBB's Ben Conway spoke with Enrique Camacho, who is SVP group creative director at MullenLowe U.S.

[Above: KFC's Manhattan Chizzeria pop-up]

LBB> How did you react to ‘Chizza’? Had you seen it before its US debut?

Enrique> I knew about this product by hearing about it from other countries, but also thought that it might be a great, fun product to bring to this country - especially with the big love for pizza that exists here. My first reaction when I saw and tried it for first time was of confusion as to what exactly it is; a pizza with a fried chicken base? A chicken parm with pepperoni on top? An open-sided double down? [It was] none of the above - it was Chizza, and it was actually pretty good.

LBB> What were some immediate creative ideas that came to mind when you saw the product?

Enrique> Even just hearing the name, we knew it was going to be something people would be curious about. It’s fried chicken-meets-pizza. What’s not to love? But we knew there might be some backlash from the pizza experts who would immediately be offended by this thing. So, we had fun with that in the tagline. Because at the end of the day, it’s really not pizza. It’s a new, wonderfully weird thing.

LBB> You created five spots for the campaign which show the Chizza up close and personal - all centred around the Chizza’s legitimacy as a pizza. How did this creative idea come to be?

Enrique> With the TV work, we wanted to pose the question, 'Is the Chizza technically Pizza?' - and lead the witness a bit. Because you could make the case for Chizza being pizza. It’s got all the toppings – mozzarella, marinara and pepperoni. It comes in a pizza-like box. The only thing that disqualifies it is the fried chicken crust. And in the end, we’re agreeing with the pizza experts. It’s not Pizza. It’s Chizza.

LBB> When did Bad Granny become part of the plan? What does she add to the campaign?

Enrique> For our TV spot 'Nonna', we wanted to cast a grandma that felt real and genuine. We had a meeting with our KFC clients to present the casting specs that turned into a nice brainstorm where they asked how we make the Nonna role more relevant and make her the Chizza enemy. We liked the idea and started thinking about how to make it also work for socials and that’s where we started exploring this weird trend of famous online grumpy grandmothers.

We went on TikTok and found the perfect person to represent our pizza establishment, Bad Granny (@grannysoffherrocker on TikTok), a genuine New York granny. We cast some others but none of them could beat Bad Granny - they were not even close. She is not only going to be in the TV campaign, but she is also going to make some work for her social media channels.

It was her first time acting and she nailed it. She also got a free cut and colour out of it.

LBB> The campaign also involves converting a Manhattan KFC restaurant into a ‘Chizzeria’ - what were the creative, design and logistic challenges behind this aspect of the project? 

Enrique> New York City is the pizza capital of America. There are thousands of pizzerias throughout the city. But there’s never been a 'Chizzeria' – and we wanted to be the first. The Chizzeria borrows all the aesthetics of a classic pizzeria – the wood-panelled walls, the signed photos of celebs, the sun faded pictures of little league teams – and adds a Chizza twist to it all. We worked with design team Morning Breath Inc. on the logos and merch and Makeout NYC on the build.

They were amazing partners in bringing our Chizzeria to life, which was open for two days (February 24th-25th) to give pizza-loving New Yorkers a first taste of the Chizza before it rolls out nationwide.

LBB> How does this campaign fit into the wider work MullenLowe is doing with KFC? What can we expect from the team in the future?

Enrique> This is the start of a new creative vision for KFC. We are trying to modernise the brand and make it more appealing to younger generations like gen z and young millennials, leaving their old icon, the colonel in the kitchen and focusing more on the food. But more importantly, we are trying to put KFC back into the cultural conversation. This is opening the door for us to produce more great ideas not just with traditional media but also with fun and disruptive ones.