There is a certain kind of chaotic energy that takes over when a meme gets too big for the internet. You’ll then see a brand that “listens to the fans,” and we’ll get a slightly different-shaped nugget or perhaps a recycled sauce. But every so often, the collective obsession of social media demands something so profoundly ridiculous that a marketing department actually loses its mind and says, “Yes.”
Case in point, a piece of outerwear that defies both fashion and logic, and it comes with a built-in straw of all things.
Manifesting the Absurd
Someone posted an AI-generated video of a pickle-filled puffer jacket online a while back. The reaction wasn’t “that’s absurd.” It was closer to, “Why doesn’t this exist?” And then what do you know, KFC UK & Ireland made it exist.
The Pickle Puffer is a wearable jacket packed with actual sliced gherkins and brine, with a built-in straw for drinking the juice.
Unfortunately, you’re not going to find it in stores (or anywhere outside the UK and Ireland, for that matter). KFC UK created it as a limited promotional stunt to hype its latest Pickle Mania menu, and there’s only one available.
They’re giving it away via KFC UK’s Instagram (@kfc_uki), where fans can tag a friend in the comments under the giveaway post, and become the lucky owner of what is probably the most committed piece of fast food merchandise in recent memory.
The menu in question launched on March 23 and runs until April 19. The spread features four items: the Pickle Burger, Pickle Loaded Fries, Frickles, and a Pickle Pepsi Max. The last one is either the natural conclusion of the pickle trend or a sign it’s gone too far.
Sources: KFC UK, Creative Boom, KFC UK (Instagram)