In June 2014, we launched “KIPPU KAT” - a special edition of Kit Kat chocolate bar that sells for 108 Japanese Yen and can be used as a railway ticket for up to 190 Japanese Yen.

The campaign was built around this to refocus the nation’s attention back to the ongoing plight of the Tohoku region, and to encourage people to visit Tohoku, bringing in tourism dollars.

Within four short months, the campaign generated impressive PR – the idea of turning a Kit Kat chocolate bar into a train ticket has never been done before. So for bloggers and news channels, the idea was definitely PR worthy.

The campaign aimed to refocus the nation’s attention back to the ongoing plight of the Tohoku region and to encourage people to visit Tohoku.

In June 2014, we launched “KIPPU KAT” - a special edition of Kit Kat chocolate bar that sells for 108 Yen and can be used as a local Sanriku railway ticket for up to 190 Yen. The Kit Kat product packaging was redesigned to look like a train ticket.

KIPPU KAT was made available at Kiosks and CVSs in the train station nationwide plus supermarkets in the affected region. The packaging and collaterals were designed to motivate people to visit Tohoku.

KIPPU KAT successfully re-ignited the nation’s interest in the recovery of Tohoku – the campaign was broadcasted on both regional and national TV, generating over 300 million Japanese Yen in PR value in 4 months.

During the campaign period, over 70,000 people bought KIPPU KATs as a symbol of support for Tohoku, exceeding campaign target of 30,000 participants. In addition, approximately 150 Million Yen Economic Value Generated for tourism spend.

The idea of extending a chocolate bar into a train ticket also became the topic of conversation outside of Japan. The campaign was picked up by international online blogs like PSFK, TAXI, DIGG and news sites like the Wall Street Journal, NBC News, USA Today and Thomson Reuters.