By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
If you’re hungry for a scented candle, or just plain hungry, Homesick Candles has a new candle that smells like a KFC Bucket of Chicken.
As well, Homesick has come up with a side dish to go with it, namely a scented candle with the aroma of KFC’s Buttery Biscuits. Can the KFC French Fries Candle be far behind?
I was particularly interested in this KFC x Homesick Candles mashup because KFC was a big part of my life as a little kid growing up in Vancouver. When we were good kids, there were three takeout options we could get, those being Chinese takeout from the local favorite Varsity Grill; a pizza from Olympia Pizza in Vancouver’s Greek neighborhood; or a monster bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
In those days, the KFC restaurant in our Kitsilano neighborhood wasn’t a fast food joint; it was a full on sit-down restaurant with proper cutlery, cloth napkins, and even an ice cream stand over in the corner where they made up cones and sundaes. Waiters in white shirts and ties took your order and brought the food, but the bucket was there for the takeout crowd.
The KFC was so close that when the wind was right you could actually get a whiff of frying chicken, which promptly gave us all unbearable cravings, so I can only imagine what a KFC candle would do to the average human’s salivary glands.
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Getting back to the point, KFC has teamed up with Homesick Candles on this product launch, releasing the two candles in time for the holiday season. In addition to the candles, there’s also Bucket of Chicken car freshener, which should help usher you at breakneck speed into the nearest KFC drive-through line.
KFC has clearly really thought this one out.
The Bucket of Chicken Candle is inspired by KFC’s Original Recipe, with notes of chicken and browned flour paired with peppercorn and celery, and a base of oregano, sage, and garlic. The Buttery Biscuit Candle features notes of honey and baked flour with hints of caramel, butter, and salt, as well as buttermilk and toasted vanilla.
But, do I really have to tell you that? Can’t I just say it smells like KFC?
This is not the KFC’s first rodeo in the world of ‘scent marketing’. The chain launched fried chicken-scented sunscreen in 2016, for instance, to promote its Extra Crispy Chicken, so the fried people would think of fried chicken. They also introduced fried chicken-scented fire logs (aka Yule Logs) for the holiday season in 2018, while in 2020 KFC teamed up with Crocs to introduce bucket-themed shoes with Jibbitz embellishments that smelled like fried chicken.
At the time, the company said these types of products not only generate social media buzz, but also build brand awareness. And of course, they get your salivary glands working overtime, forcing you to stagger zombie-like to the nearest KFC.
You can pick up the KFC Collection at the Homesick Candle website, at THIS LINK.
Personally, I’m a little nervous about getting one. If I couldn’t get to a KFC in time, I might just end up eating the candle.