Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), an American fast food chain, has adapted to the Chinese market by shifting its menu away from fried foods. Its executives claim that this strategy has been very successful, and they will continue to modify Chinese KFC menus to suit local tastes. From the International Herald Tribune:
With a possible U.S. recession looming, Colonel Sanders is turning to China to increase sales, offering a menu of fried dough and preserved egg porridge alongside the chicken that turned KFC into an American icon.
Faced with falling revenue at home, Yum Brands, which owns the Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut brands, has begun an expansion in China that could make the country the company’s biggest source of profit within a decade.
But like many foreign companies in China, from cellphone makers to clothing designers, Yum has discovered it cannot rely on a foreign brand name for growth and must instead adapt to local tastes and lifestyles.
So KFC has given a Chinese twist to its menu by adding dishes similar to the food that tens of millions of Chinese grab from street stalls or small restaurants on their way to work every day.
