"Jensen Huang Went to Kkanbu Chicken”... BBQ’s ‘Reality Humor Marketing’ Strikes a Chord

[Financial News] A post on the official Threads account of chicken franchise Genesis BBQ Group has become a hot topic.
The post, which begins, “What’s the point of planning all week if Jensen Huang doesn’t come? Just thinking about Monday’s meeting is already exhausting,” was a witty reaction to the ‘chicken gathering’ between Nvidia Corporation CEO Jensen Huang, Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics, and Chung Eui-sun of Hyundai Motor Group, who met in Korea while attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit on the 30th of last month.
As the meeting drew national attention, people also became curious about the venue: it was Kkanbu Chicken. BBQ responded to the rival’s viral moment with good-natured jealousy.

The post, uploaded by BBQ on Threads on the 3rd, began by expressing regret that CEO Jensen Huang didn’t visit, and ended with, “It’s tough being a marketer. Why did chicken have to go so viral?”
The post quickly gained traction, receiving over 1,500 ‘likes’ in less than a day.
In fact, the post was planned and uploaded directly by Genesis BBQ Group’s Global Branding Strategy Office, which oversees the brand’s global image and content strategy. Recently, the team has been running a ‘junior marketer’ persona to better communicate with the MZ generation.

While the department’s executive manages the brand’s direction and content, it is known that posts are written in a tone reflecting the language habits of the digital generation.
The post has also sparked enthusiastic reactions from netizens.
Comments included, “My son, who never eats pasta, is now waiting to eat this (BBQ),” “I had BBQ every weekend—be proud,” and “I saw this and ordered BBQ for dinner. Stay strong!”
Some netizens even suggested creative ideas for BBQ.
One user proposed, “bb.q is 6.6.9. June 6th at 9 p.m. should be BBQ day. How about a ‘66.9’ event?”
One comment particularly stood out: “If the overall image of Korean fried chicken improves, BBQ will benefit as well. The marketing team doesn’t need to worry.”

A BBQ spokesperson explained, “We were inspired by CEO Jensen Huang’s comment that ‘the world’s best chicken is Korean fried chicken.’”
Kkanbu Chicken, in particular, enjoyed a surge in popularity thanks to the APEC event. Immediately after Huang’s visit, ‘Kkanbu Chicken’ topped real-time search rankings online, and a notice was posted at the Samseong-dong branch in Seoul, where they sat, limiting table use to one hour.
Some locations even had to temporarily close due to overwhelming orders.
The chicken industry expects that CEO Huang’s visit will further boost the global recognition of ‘Korean fried chicken.’ International media outlets such as CNN also highlighted the ‘Chimaek’ culture—pairing chicken with beer.
Experts note that Korean fried chicken has become a global cultural phenomenon, not just a food, thanks to its crispy texture from double-frying, promotional effects from K-dramas like ‘My Love from the Star’ and ‘Crash Landing on You,’ and the brands’ strategies of offering locally tailored menus.
Currently, BBQ operates over 700 overseas locations in 57 countries, BHC Chicken has about 30 stores in 7 countries, and Kyochon runs around 80 outlets in 7 countries.
y27k@fnnews.com Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter