The first long weekend of the year is coming up, and the best place to spend it will be … Bloemfontein! That’s because the latest edition of KFC’s hit pop-up, Kentucky Town, opens in the City of Roses on Thursday 20 March, the day before Human Rights Day, bringing the finger lickin’ good vibes to the Free State for the first time.
For 11 action-packed days – one for each of the herbs and spices in KFC’s legendary secret recipe – the new-look KFC Willows will be the place to be for a limited-edition menu, exclusive swag collections, unique brand experiences and cool competitions with great prizes.
There’ll also be the chance to rub shoulders with the unofficial “mayor of Kentucky Town”, DJ and designer Mateki2Shoes – aka Big Qhwa – and an amazing line-up of stars from your socials, including dance sensation Chad Jones, magician Wian van den Berg, entertainer Lebo Molax and Big Brother Titans winner Khosi Twala.
“This is the fifth edition of Kentucky Town, and after wonderful experiences in Joburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town we’re delighted to finally reach Bloem,” says KFC Africa Chief Marketing Officer Grant Macpherson.
“Free Staters made it clear that they wouldn’t be left out, and we’re going to give them an event to remember. We’ll be offering some of our biggest fans the best of KFC but on a whole new level.”
And for out-of-towners, Macpherson says the long weekend and the start of the school holiday the following weekend mean Kentucky Town Bloem could also be incorporated into a road trip.
The star of the show at every Kentucky Town is the menu, inspired by foods and flavours from the area. The main-course specials to look out for in Bloem are the Zinger Cheesy Cheetah Meal, the Six Gun Grill Zinger Braai Burger and the Hot Honey Dunked Doughnut Zinger Burger.
Exclusive snacks include Chilli Lime Dunked Strips, Flamin’ Hot Doritos Loaded Fries and Cola Dunked Wings, and the Kentucky Town desserts are Mr Sweets Speckled Eggs Doughnut Delight and Kentucky Fried Oreo. Drinks on the KFC Willows menu for the 11 days of the event are the Mr Sweets Speckled Eggs Shake, Pink Mojito Shimmer Krusher and – Litchi Boba.
“There’ll also be a rare chance to take the KFC taste home because the Dunked Sauce and Colonel Dressing will be on sale for R70 a bottle,” says Macpherson.
Bringing spice to your style, Kentucky Town Bloem will feature a limited-edition range of KFC clothing including vintage tees, hoodies, parachute pants, crop tops, socks, plakkies, sling bags, caps and bucket hats. KFC is also showcasing its collab with ImprintZA by Mzukisi Mbane, which includes sweaters, tees, bags and bucket hats.
Then there’s the Always Original Sneaker Customisation Station with Converse, where you can buy a pair of kicks (or drop off a pair you already own) and have them customised by a sneaker artist … for free! Everyone who takes part stands a chance of winning one of two pairs of customised Converse sneakers worth R2,000.
Macpherson says the Kentucky Town vibe starts when visitors step off the pavement at KFC Willows. “The first free attraction they’ll see is the Colonel’s Fisheye camera booth with extra-cool lighting which makes it look like people are standing in a KFC bucket,” he says. “It’s the perfect spot to feed the FOMO by shooting social content, and images will be shared directly to visitors’ devices to share and stand the chance to win an all-in-one mobile vlogging kit worth R4000”.
Next is the perfect setting for selfies and groupies, the Greenery Wall with neon branding. If your photo is a keeper, have it enhanced by artificial intelligence and printed on a genuine KFC bucket at the AI Self(ie) Bucket Station. While you’re there, build an amazing KFC meal with the KFC Play virtual reality game and put yourself in the running for a R500 voucher. More vouchers will be up for grabs in a giant Boba Pong game.
Next-door, you’ll find the Heita Bloem music booth, featuring local DJs, and nearby is the ASMR Bucket Studio, a soundproof booth to create your own ASMR KFC audio.
Macpherson says, “Big Qhwa, Chad, Wian, Lebo, Khosi, Janey and Wayney and lots of other social media stars know this is a huge event, which is why they’ll be there. It’s definitely a case of ‘Be there or be told!’”
KFC’s Kentucky Town Bloem will be open from 9am-9pm daily between Thursday 20 March and Sunday 30 March at KFC Willows, 60 Park Road, Bloemfontein.
The post Kentucky Town makes Bloem the star-studded long weekend hotspot appeared first on HYPE Magazine.
![CTT Beats, Flash Ikumkani, Hannah V – UNDITHWELE [ Official Video]](https://dalakreative.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/126e2320-6774-67b8-c0d0-6e9f02af4d58.jpg)
