KFC: OM BDR
KFC Arabia tasked TBWA\RAAD with increasing brand relevance among Saudi youth. The client observed a disconnect between their standardized global menu and the evolving local palate. They sought to improve sales performance and brand sentiment by addressing the growing trend of consumers customizing their meals with local spices, aiming to turn this organic behavior into a formal, scalable, and culturally authentic menu collaboration.
Creative Idea
KFC turned a viral TikTok spice hack into an official 12th secret ingredient.
KFC Arabia officially adopted a local TikTok trend by partnering with Saudi home cook Om Bdr, incorporating her popular Srar Hail spice as a 12th ingredient to validate local culinary authority and deepen brand resonance with Saudi consumers.
Turning a Viral Hack into Official Menu History
From TikTok Trend to Store Shelves
The campaign originated from organic social listening, where the team observed Saudi users purchasing KFC buckets specifically to douse them in Srar Hail, a local seasoning blend crafted by entrepreneur Om Bdr. Rather than issuing cease-and-desists, the agency chose to legitimize the behavior. This marked a significant shift for the brand, as it was the first time KFC Arabia co-created a product with a local Saudi creator, moving away from reliance on global marketing templates.
Unfiltered Realism in Production
The production team intentionally avoided high-end studio aesthetics to maintain authenticity. Filming took place inside operational KFC stores using minimal setups. Om Bdr appeared as herself without a scripted persona or corporate wardrobe, ensuring the collaboration felt like a natural extension of her brand. The co-creation process extended to the packaging and the specific spice blend, ensuring it honored the culinary heritage of Hail, Saudi Arabia.
Sales and Cultural Velocity
The impact was immediate and quantifiable. The collaboration achieved the brand's highest-ever sales mix at 15%, performing 2.5x above brand benchmarks. Daily units sold exceeded projections by 133%, and the limited-edition items sold out in under 3 weeks. The demand was so intense that KFC was forced to pivot, eventually selling single-unit shakers of the seasoning at checkout counters. The campaign reached over 7 million people through creator partnerships, with a click-through rate 91.25% above category standards. As Ahmed Arafa, CMO of KFC Arabia, noted, the campaign succeeded because they stopped borrowing trends and instead made the creator a partner, proving that the most effective innovation often comes from listening to the community.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
KFC leveraged its massive distribution network and iconic, secret-recipe heritage to provide a platform for local culinary innovation.
Category
Global restaurant chains typically enforce rigid, standardized global menus that often ignore local flavor preferences and regional culinary nuances.
Customer
Saudi consumers wanted their global fast-food experience to reflect their local palate and respect their traditional home-cooked spice blends.
Culture
The viral TikTok trend of Saudi users manually adding local Srar Hail seasoning to KFC buckets created immediate cultural momentum.
Company
KFC leveraged its massive distribution network and iconic, secret-recipe heritage to provide a platform for local culinary innovation.
Category
Global restaurant chains typically enforce rigid, standardized global menus that often ignore local flavor preferences and regional culinary nuances.
Strategy:
Validate grassroots consumer behavior to transform global brand identity into local cultural currency.
Customer
Saudi consumers wanted their global fast-food experience to reflect their local palate and respect their traditional home-cooked spice blends.
Culture
The viral TikTok trend of Saudi users manually adding local Srar Hail seasoning to KFC buckets created immediate cultural momentum.
Strategy:
Validate grassroots consumer behavior to transform global brand identity into local cultural currency.
Results
The campaign achieved remarkable success, including a 15% sales spike (the highest campaign sales spike in KFC Saudi history). The new menu item sold out completely in 3 weeks, and Om Bdr's spice sold out on her own website. The campaign achieved a CTR 91.25% above the category benchmark, reached 7,152,300 through influencer outreach, generated 63,300 TikTok engagements, and achieved 133% daily store units sold above expectations.
15%
highest campaign sales spike ever
3 weeks
sold out completely
+133%
daily store units sold above expectations
Strategy Technique
Celebrate the Subculture
By elevating a local home cook's viral seasoning, KFC validates the community's existing habits. This shifts the brand from a global outsider to a participant in local Saudi food culture.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Collaborate with another brand
The campaign formalizes a grassroots consumer behavior by partnering with the creator of the seasoning. This turns an unofficial social media hack into an authentic, co-branded product offering.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
This campaign excels through radical brand localization and exquisite art direction, boldly replacing an iconic global brand figure with a local cultural icon. The visual execution seamlessly fuses traditional Saudi aesthetics with KFC's iconic commercial identity.
KFC completely revamped its physical environment, turning store seating into traditional Hail-inspired majlis lounges and introducing custom spice shaker packaging.
The visual contrast of Om Bdr on a regal throne alongside green-and-red modified KFC buckets created an instant, iconic brand imagery mashup.
“The combination of immersive physical restaurant redesign and striking graphic art direction created a unified, viral cultural moment.”
