Who Strategized KFC's Napkinized? BICster Maxime Menant.

In the Middle East, KFC is a favorite restaurant amongst family and friends. But how do you inject fresh meaning into the brand's recognizable positioning line "finger lickin' good"? Maxime Menant, BIC '15, to the rescue! As Strategic Planning Director at TBWA\RAAD, Maxime was the strategic driver behind KFC's newly launched "Napkinized" campaign which transformed the chain's menus, receipts, placemats, and bags into napkins so customers could enjoy eating with their hands more easily. The campaign was so notable, it was a recent Editor's Pick in AdAge.

As Strategic Planning Director on the KFC account at TBWA\RAAD in the Middle Eastern North African (MENA) region, Maxime found inspiration from audience research. He learned that there was a lack of understanding and relevancy for their Middle eastern audience when it came to the brand's “finger lickin’ good” slogan. Coined by a KFC manager in the 1950's and considered one of the greatest advertising slogans of all time, this iconic line wasn't quite resonating with consumers in the region who considered it purely descriptive.


To activate KFC's slogan (and in true TBWA disruptive fashion), the agency decided to create a fast food eating environment that dramatized the urgent necessity of napkins when you eat food that is "finger lickin' good."  Nearly everything made out of paper -- from menus to placemats -- could also be used as napkins. After weeks of development in partnership with suppliers, Maxime and his team produced a special ink-resistant tissue paper, strong enough to wipe customers' face, hands, and fingers, but thin enough to get printed with chemical free ink. New menus, food bags, posters, flyers, placemats and even receipts were created from the special ink-resistant, eco-friendly, bio-degradable tissue paper, proving that all you really need to fully enjoy its delicious food are your fingers and a craving for Kentucky Fried Chicken.


Since the debut of 'Napkinized' in January 2020, over 7,000 customers have enjoyed the new restaurants in Dubai and Beirut. The online and on-ground engagement around 'Napkinized' surpassed expectations. KFC plans to expand their 'Napkinization' to the MENA region and will eventually roll out to 87 of their restaurants in the UAE and Lebanon.