culture corner: Kit Kats

As the delicate sakura (cherry blossom) buds begin to bloom, Japanese supermarkets also witness a sudden explosion of pink on the shelves: boxes and boxes of special edition sakura-flavored chocolate wafers treasured by all ages. The coming of spring is celebrated by both nature and by the ever-enterprising Nestlé KitKat.

KitKats were invented by British candy company Rowntree in 1935 and were known as Chocolate Crisp until 1937. The candy supposedly derived its name from a 1920s London literary club. Another theory claims the cherished chocolate took its name from kitkat paintings made to fit in small spaces. Japan, however, is accredited with the most creative KitKat concepts—from the flavors to the packaging.

In Japan, presentation counts, even for simple things like food packaging. When it comes to KitKats, Japan definitely thinks outside the wrapper. KitKats come in the conventional boxed four-piece variety, but also come in party packs (filled with about 30 individually wrapped KitKats), jars containing four big bars, and even a single KitKat stick.

Not only are KitKats the bestselling candy bar in Japan, but there are also more than 45 flavors unique to the Land of the Rising Sun. Here, KitKats are not only manufactured in the conventional flavors of chocolate and white, but also apple, fruit parfait, peach, yubari melon (cantaloupe), bitter chocolate, brandy and orange, blood orange, Café Latte, Hokkaidô milk, lemon cheesecake, mango, kiwi, white maple syrup, red wine, noir (dark, bitter chocolate with nut cream between the wafers and dusted cocoa power on top), passion fruit, and extra creamy. To suit the Japanese palate, Nestlé also developed flavors such as matcha milk (green tea and milk), azuki (red bean), matcha kakigori (shaved ice) topped with condensed milk and azuki, and even a gourmet Japan KitKat series that included “Exotic Tokyo” (chocolate and raspberry), “Exotic Kansai” (passion fruit, ginger, lemon, and orange), “Exotic Hokkaido” (creamy white milk chocolate and blueberry), and “Exotic Kyushu” (mango, white chocolate, orange, and caramel) flavors created to reflect each region of Japan.

Before major school exams, it’s a tradition for worried parents and anxious students to flock to the nearest convenience store and supermarket to purchase a couple of boxes of KitKats for sweet success. This tradition arose via a stealth advertising campaign by the Japanese Nestlé division. The main target of the campaign was Japan’s teenage population. The first part of this campaign involved hotels giving away free KitKat bars as “lucky charms” to students who came to the city to take the prestigious junken (high school/ college entrance exams). The company published ads in the form of cute fictitious stories about teachers who handed out KitKats to encourage their students to succeed, mothers who presented their children with KitKats before exams, and students who went out and bought KitKats for good luck. The name KitKat actually sounds very similar to the Japanese phrase “Kitto katsu!” meaning “You’ll win!” Soon the traditional good luck meal of katsudon (breaded pork cutlets over rice— considered a lucky charm because it contains the word katsu, meaning win) yielded to the KitKat.

So before final exams, the next PSAT or SAT or even the annual Terra Nova test, slip in a Kit Kat bar for luck next to that apple or pack of whole grain crackers.

—Mina Furusho