KFC South Asia picks McDonald's regional marketing and digital lead for newly created role

KFC has appointed Tuck Wai Yue (pictured) as its head of eCommerce, loyalty and digital for South Asia.

In this newly created role, Tuck will support KFC’s fast-growing markets in Southeast Asia and build on the progress made by the brand’s teams in the region. He will focus on digital, CRM and loyalty, which he described as key business accelerators for KFC, while continuing to drive fan excitement for the brand.

He reports to Jack Foley, interim chief marketing officer of KFC South Asia.

In conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Tuck said the brand’s unique combination of a people-centric and performance-driven culture drew him to the role.

“I had originally planned to take some time out before my next role, but the people, energy and ambition within the organisation made this opportunity very difficult to pass up,” he said.

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Prior to taking on the role, Tuck spent eight years at McDonald’s, most recently serving as regional marketing and digital director for the fast-food chain’s Asia business unit. In the role, he supported markets across North, Southeast and South Asia, focusing on digital, media, value and marketing, according to his LinkedIn profile. He first joined the company as director and digital acceleration lead.

He also previously served as country head at social media agency We Are Social Singapore, as well as general manager of digital creative agency Nokomai.

Speaking about his new role, Tuck said there is a “strong desire at KFC to challenge convention and continue evolving as a challenger brand”.

“I’m excited to work alongside a talented team to rethink how digital, CRM and loyalty can create more meaningful and engaging experiences for our fans across Southeast Asia,” said Tuck.

Tuck’s appointment comes as the fast-food chain ramps up its campaigns across the region, collaborating with fan-favourite IPs and tapping into local cultural nuances.

Earlier in April, the brand teamed up with Butterbear for its “KFC x Butterbear Cuti-cuti Malaysia” campaign, blending collectibles, travel and in-store experiences into a nationwide activation. The campaign brought together KFC’s menu icons and Butterbear through a series of exclusive blind box collectibles, as well as a “tour” across selected KFC outlets.

In Singapore, the brand tapped into Singaporeans’ love for K-culture and Samyang Buldak with a limited-time menu pairing KFC’s Double Down burger with the Korean brand’s signature carbonara sauce. The campaign also featured immersive in-store experiences, including themed photobooths, to further build on the Korean-inspired experience.

Meanwhile, earlier this year, Madhav Nayak, former chief marketing officer for KFC Asia at Yum! Brands, joined Kenvue as its vice president and chief marketing officer for Asia Pacific.

In his new role, Nayak will lead the APAC marketing organisation across all markets in the region, including China, India, Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

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