Huppy Hut Duy!
It’s August once again, and in Japan that means its time to dust off our hat and huts to celebrate 10 August, which is known as Hat Day…or Hut Day.
In Japanese the short “a” and “u” sounds of English are virtually indistinguishable, so the words “hat” and “hut” would both become “hatto” (ハット) in Japanese. This confusion is the true meaning of Hat Day, as well as Hut Day, and is probably best understood after hearing The Hat Day Story, also known as The Hut Day Story.
It all began in 2019, when automotive parts retail chain Yellow Hat approached the pizza chain Pizza Hut to work together on a promotional campaign called Hat Day. Yellow Hat had hoped to use the date of 10 August because the numbers “8” and “10” could be read as “hatto” together in Japanese.
However, the deal went south after Yellow Hat realized that their would-be partner was not named Pizza Hat.
▼ Though, to be fair, their logo looks an awful lot like a hat
Nevertheless, Yellow Hat continued without the pizza giant and had Yellow Hat Day registered as a holiday on 10 August by the Japan Anniversary Association.
▼ Certificate acknowledging Yellow Hat Day as a real holiday
And even though the collaborative Hat Day plan fell through the two companies stayed in touch and the following year even worked together on a special line of Yellow Pizza Hats that were reversible and could alternate between pizza hats and tire hats with a flick of the wrist.
This relationship continued to blossom, and in 2021 Yellow Hat and Pizza Hut jointly held the “National Unified Hatto Practice Exam with only 1 Question.” That question was: Did you know that the “Hatto” in Yellow Hatto and Pizza Hatto were different?
The results showed that a surprising 86 percent of respondents in Japan were in fact not aware that Pizza Hut was a hut and not a hat. It was a surprising breakthrough in brandawarenessology and proof that this automotive supply store and pizza delivery service could achieve great things together.
However, unbeknownst to Yellow Hat, at this point Pizza Hut had already entered into secret negotiations with Ringer Hut, a fast food chain that specializes in champon, a Nagasaki dish similar to ramen. Both chains being proper “Huts,” they conspired behind Yellow Hat’s back to create a Hut Day.
▼ A series of stock-image tableaux depicting “The Great Deception” which gave rise to Hatto Day
When Yellow Hat found out they were furious and a great rift was formed between Hats and Huts. Since animosity of this degree had the potential to upend the entire pizza-automotive-soup sector of Japan’s economy, strings were pulled and a Hatto Summit Meeting was held in an undisclosed location.
We now bring you footage of this monumental meeting between presidents Yasuo Horie of Yellow Hat, Shoichi Nakamura of Pizza Hut, and Ringer Hut’s Moronobu Sasano.
As seen in the video, after a tense stand-off in which each president reveals whether they are a Hat or a Hut, Horie again found himself the odd Hat out. However, welcoming smiles from Huts Nakamura and Sasano let him know that a Hat is always welcome in a Hut.
And so, Hatto Day was born, a day that encompassed the greatness of Hats and Huts together as one on 10 August. The meeting that led to this newly defined holiday has been immortalized in a T-shirt showing the three presidents in almost uncannily lifelike detail.
These T-shirts can be won by following either Pizza Hut, Ringer Hut, or Yellow Hat on Twitter and retweeting their contest tweet between 4 and 17 August. Only one retweet will count towards entry to the contest, but you can retweet all three companies’ tweets to triple your chances. However, that’s just the beginning of the Hat Day festivities, not to mention Hut Day.
Pizza Hut is offering the Hut Day 1,000-Yen Pack, that includes a medium size pizza and choice of three side dishes. The offer is available from the 8th to 10th of each month, and the type of pizza changes each month.
▼ August’s pizza is a Half & Half Tomato Garlic / Potato Mayo Corn
Yellow Hat, meanwhile, is holding a special Hat Day Sale from 5 to 16 August in which they’ll be selling limited edition merchandise such as toilet paper covers and pails, all featuring the store’s mascot Hattonyan, a cat-tire hybrid with a yellow hat.
This Hut Day is a particularly auspicious one for Ringer Hut, as it’s also the chain’s 60th anniversary, so in addition to the T-shirt Twitter campaign, they are also holding a separate Hut Day contest where retweets could win 10 lucky people an official Ringer Hut tajine, which is a specially shaped cooking pot used in North African cuisine.
Yes, it’s sure to be a Hat Day to remember, and quite possibly the greatest Hut Day yet, so mark your calendars with whichever rendering of hatto you prefer and be sure to take part in the festivities.
Source: PR Times via Netlab
Images: PR Times (Unless otherwise noted)
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