National Fish & Chip Day is turning 10 this year and as a proud sponsor from the very beginning, we’re excited to continue supporting this celebration of the UK’s number one takeaway.
To encourage as many shops as possible to join the celebrations, we’ve put together 10 fun ways to mark the day from promotions and competitions to community initiatives.
1. Serve up a £10 meal deal
Create a meal deal for £10 that works for your business. Bundle a portion of fish and chips with a drink and perhaps a side. Want to drive footfall? Make it in-store only. Need to streamline operations? Offer it through online ordering.
2. Feature 10 different species
Use the week leading up to National Fish & Chip Day to spotlight 10 species of fish or seafood. With rising costs on traditional cod and haddock, this is the perfect chance to introduce customers to alternatives such as hake and pollock as well as try sides such as calamari and whitebait, or different homemade fishcakes.
3. Number 10 games
Give customers the chance to pick a card from a shuffled deck and if they draw a 10, they win a prize. Easy, fun and interactive. Another alternative is to set up two dice at the counter and any customer who rolls a total of 10 wins a small prize – but get two fives to win free chips.
4. Hold a raffle
Hand out raffle tickets to every customer on the day and have ten prizes up for grabs. Take a photo of each winner when they come to collect their prize to post on your socials – it’s all additional PR opportunities.
5. 10-past-the-hour surprise
Give away a £10 voucher redeemable on a customer’s next purchase to the person at the front of the queue every time the clock hits 10 minutes past the hour.
6. Birthday treats and name games
Celebrate customers turning 10 on National Fish & Chip Day with a free kids’ meal – it’s their day too! Alternatively, know any “Austens” or “Quintens”? Why not offer free fish and chips for customers with the word “ten’ in their name?
7. Group of 10 discount
Offer 10% off to any group ordering 10 portions of fish and chips. Great for families, friends or coworkers celebrating together and a good way to drive high volume orders. This works really well online as you have more time to plan ahead.
8. Find your top 10 super fans
Ask customers to share why they’re your biggest fan on socials. Do they come in every week without fail? Always order the same thing? Pick your favourite 10 and invite them in on National Fish & Chip Day for a photo opportunity and to collect a prize – perhaps free fish and chips for a year?
9. Local treasure hunt
Hide 10 vouchers in your local area or ask local schools, businesses, or organisations to hand them out as random acts of kindness. This is a great way to promote your shop in the community.
10. Take a trip down memory lane
Share your highlights over the past 10 years with your customers. From photos of your shop and staff, to your most popular social media posts or menu items. Ask customers to join in as well and share their memories. Why not also pop a charity bucket on your counter and raise money for a good cause?
Tanya Henderson, managing director at KFE, comments: “National Fish & Chip Day is a great way to celebrate our much-loved national dish and the hard-working businesses behind it, and a brilliant opportunity to bring communities together. Whether it’s through offers, games or local initiatives, there’s no right or wrong way to celebrate.”
Don’t forget to buy your branded merchandise, including t-shirts, caps and bunting, from the National Fish & Chip Day Shop, while wholesalers Friars Pride, V.A. Whitley and Henry Colbeck have branded Lite Bite boxes and greaseproof paper available.