Taking forward the brand’s commitment to nurture a community marked by Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, KFC India launched its most inclusive Special KFC restaurant in Amanora Mall, Pune, ahead of International Day of Persons with Disabilities. Operated by specially-abled team members, elements at this Special KFC restaurant include infrastructural design, accessibility & décor features to enhance customer experience & provide an inclusive environment.
The restaurant is an embodiment of the brand’s efforts with Kshamata – a program to bridge the gender & ability imbalance gap. With KFC Kshamata, the brand has pledged to drive 2X empowerment by 2024, by doubling the number of Special KFCs, restaurants run by specially-abled team members, and increasing the women workforce at the restaurants.
The restaurant has been designed keeping accessibility at the core and majority of the décor features are in braille and sign language. All the signage outside & within the restaurant is accompanied by iterations in Indian Sign Language. This begins with the brand’s signature at the entrance where the iconic KFC is spelt in sign language, as well as all areas within the restaurant including the ordering & pick-up section and digital kiosks. The restaurant also features a signature wall highlighting alphabets from A to Z in braille and Indian Sign Language, to encourage patrons visiting the restaurant to learn and #SpeakSign. The seating arrangement within the restaurant has been created to accommodate wheelchairs at dine-in tables.
KFC India has been a pioneer in enabling the Speech & Hearing Impaired by extending employment & growth opportunities to them since 2008, employing & supporting more than 150 Speech & Hearing-Impaired team members across 19 cities. Recently, the brand announced a milestone in their journey with Kshamata, with the appointment of the first specially-abled Restaurant General Manager in Hyderabad – Srikanth Jarugu.
On International Day of Sign Languages, 23rd September, KFC launched the #SpeakSign campaign and Kshamata film – directed by filmmaker Shoojit Sircar, which aims at sensitizing & building awareness of sign language. Earlier this year, the brand also introduced braille menus across its 600+ restaurants in the country.
Taking the pledge beyond their restaurants, KFC partnered with the Indian Deaf Cricket Association (IDCA) as ‘Principal Sponsor’ to build visibility and growth for the sport of cricket for the hearing impaired in the country.
