Weddings aren’t cheap. In fact, with each pal I see tie the knot, I can’t help but think how much of a financial burden weddings seem to be. Don’t get me wrong, I love weddings. I love love. However, when I think too much about getting hitched, the cost and logistics of organising the big day make me break out into a cold sweat. But it seems like one Sydney couple has found their way around the financial pressures of a wedding by getting chicken giants KFC to fund their special day.
When Thanh Huyhn and Brian Tran came across KFC’s competition to win a fully-funded wedding in November 2023, they knew they were the perfect couple to give it a crack. After all, Brian is a Kentucky Fried Chicken enthusiast who has dreams of tasting the crispy chicken goodness in every country across the globe. So, in the hopes of copping a fully-paid chicken-filled wedding, Brian got down on one knee with an onion ring in hand to ask Thanh to be his wife… again.
Thanh said yes, and much to the young couple’s surprise, so did KFC. Out of hundreds of entrants, it was Brian’s unwavering love for Thanh… sorry, I mean, KFC, that saw them gifted the matrimonial experience.
“We were completely surprised – it was so unexpected,” Brian told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
“We had already started planning a more intimate wedding towards the end of last year and already had a date set, so when we found out we won, we only had a couple of weeks to make our dream wedding come to life. The day was everything we wanted and so much more.”
Although some couples treat weddings with the reverence of a spiritual, church-like experience that doesn’t necessarily include a smorgasbord of chicken, Brian and Thanh didn’t share the same view. They just wanted a wedding that they would never, ever forget.
“The most important part of our wedding day was celebrating Brian and I with our family and friends,” Thanh explained.
“We don’t take ourselves too seriously and we’re big KFC fans — well, by we, I mean, especially Brian. We wanted to have a really fun and memorable day with our guests and in the end, that’s exactly what we got. The day totally exceeded our expectations, we have loads of unforgettable memories and everyone who came had an absolute blast. There’s not much more you could want from a wedding day.”
Although the couple didn’t have long to get things organised, they had a neato $80,000 to splash around — and, boy, did they make the most of it.
The ceremony kicked off at the Sydney Opera House before kicking on to a picnic on Bennelong Lawn and a reception at Cabra-Vale Diggers. And as you’d expect, they had more KFC than a 16-year-old KFC employee who smuggled leftover chicken out in their bag at the end of a shift. I’m talking about an entire grazing table, a wedding cake, a fully-catered picnic and takeaway chicken boxes all filled with the 11 herbs and spices.
Hell, Brian and Thanh even asked for chicken-themed onesies to boogie in at the reception. You’ve gotta admire their commitment to the bit.
Along with creating a day that their guests will never, ever forget, it’s not lost on Brian and Thanh how much money they saved in the process.
“Winning the KFC wedding definitely saved us a lot of money,” Tranh said.
“The total package was worth $80,000 and it allowed us to go all out and enjoy ourselves on the day whilst also saving. We’ve just booked our honeymoon to Japan so we’re excited to go and enjoy a wonderful holiday together. And work on Brian’s bucket list of trying KFC from every country!”
Look, a KFC-themed wedding might not be for everyone, but just from the pics alone, it’s pretty clear that Brian and Thanh ‘s KFC wedding seems like so much fkn fun.
Shoot me an invite next time, will ya?
