United Kingdom restaurants are poised to sell millions of fish and chip dishes today – much more than on a typical day. That is because many fish and chip shops and restaurant chains are participating in the inaugural National Fish and Chip Day.
“Hopefully, we will get a [sales] boost. Now that there is a Fish and Chip Day on the calendar, we want to make people aware of it,” Colin Cromar, owner of fish and chip shop Cromars in St. Andrews, Scotland, told SeafoodSource.
For the entire week, Cromars has been running contests on a local radio station, giving away two fish and chip entrées with a soft drink daily. On 5 June, the shop is giving away four free meals and drinks as part of the radio promotion. “Fish and Chip Day” graphics have been running on the restaurant’s digital menu boards for the week, and on Friday, staff will sample fish and chips for passersby outside the restaurant.
In business just over a year, Cromars is expected to produce GBP 730,000 (USD 1.2 million; EUR 1 million) in sales this year. And the shop is not alone. British consumers eat around 300 million portions of fish and chips annually, amounting to a GBP 1.2 billion (USD 1.84 billion; EUR 1.6 billion) in annual national sales, according to Seafish.
“The day provides a great opportunity for the UK fish and chip industry to remind consumers of the great history and traditions behind the iconic dish that is fish and chips,” said Andy Gray, trade marketing manager for Seafish.
The creation of National Fish and Chip Day grew from an idea initially discussed by members of the National Edible Oil Distributors Association at its February 2015 meeting. NEODA led the initiative, while Seafish provided a toolkit for restaurants, including draft press releases and promotional ideas for the big day.
“We have also been developing our own social media posts,” said Denise Fraser, public relations manager for Seafish. The posts include humorous images of historic world events, such as D-Day, re-imagined as how those events might be different if fish and chips were around at the time.
In addition to Cromars, numerous fish and chip shops – along with other restaurants – are running radio promotions, specials and events today, and social media promotions, using the hashtag, #FishandChipDay.
One of the most unique promotions is from The Bay chippy in Stonehaven, which customers to post a photo of themselves with their meal from The Bay or any of The Bay merchandise on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag, #Fishandchipday, with a mention of the restaurant. The winner receives a year’s supply of fish and chips.
