Expert Shares Hottest Trends in Family Reunions KFC's Web Site Features Emerging Reunion Trends
LOUISVILLE, Ky., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Remember family reunions from your childhood -- your mom cooked for days, your dad dug out the old slide projector and you played horse-shoes and tug-of-war for hours.
As we approach the next millennium -- with more people (10 million) participating in reunions than ever before -- we're noticing a whole new approach to family gatherings. Almost everything about reunions has changed -- from where they're held to the activities happening on the big day.
KFC partnered with Edith Wagner, editor of Reunions Magazine and Reunions Workbook, to create a reunion planning component on KFC's web site that describes the latest trends and shows organizers how to reinvigorate their reunions without spending a lot of time or money.
Reunion Planning Goes High-Tech
As the scope of reunions increase, so does the planning task. Reunion organizers keep family members informed of upcoming plans via e-mail and surf the web to get information from reunion-related sites. Organizers can tap into KFC's web site at www.kfc.com to e-mail Wagner their own reunion planning challenges or to check out useful planning materials.
Families Opt for Creative Reunion Sites
It used to be all of your relatives lived just a few blocks away. Now people must travel great distances at considerable costs to stay connected. "Families are choosing a central location that appeals to the majority of the attendees," Wagner said. The backyard venue has been traded in for hotels, ranches, even cruises.
Catering Favored Over Cooking
Mom's homemade meatloaf has been shunned by today's "supermoms" who opt for convenient local restaurants like KFC to handle the catering for their family reunion, Wagner said. Bill Allen, Iowa-based franchisee, says KFC does more than take the order and have it prepared for the customer to pick up.
"We go the extra mile. Customers simply make one phone call and KFC does the rest -- including bringing the necessary equipment to keep the food hot or cold, whichever is appropriate," Allen said.
"Divide and Conquer" -- Families Divvy up Planning Tasks
Planning a successful reunion around today's busy lifestyles can be challenging. Wagner advises organizers to delegate responsibilities so that one person doesn't have to do everything and to use family talents for: newsletters, mailings, data collection of addresses or family history, to name a few duties.
Golf Tops List as Favorite Activity
Don't look for bingo or charades at your next reunion. According to Wagner, those games have been replaced with activities like golf -- one-fifth of reunions include a golf game. Families opting for a winter reunion often head to the slopes for skiing.
Other new features include: establishing family fundraisers to award scholarships; giving savings bonds during reunion ceremonies; and featuring the family logo on T-shirts, baseball caps and coffee mugs.
KFC, based in Louisville, Ky., is the world's most popular chicken restaurant chain specializing in Original Recipe(R), Extra Tasty Crispy(TM), Tender Roast(R) and Colonel's Crispy Strips(R) chicken with homestyle sides. Since its founding by Colonel Harland Sanders in 1952, KFC has been serving customers delicious, already-prepared complete family meals at affordable prices. There are more than 9,900 KFC outlets in 76 countries around the world serving nearly seven million customers each day. KFC is a subsidiary of Tricon, Louisville, Ky. Tricon is listed on the NYSE under the ticker symbol: YUM. SOURCE KFC
CO: KFC; Tricon
