It’s time to inhale some gyudon!

Japanese marketing is full of celebrity endorsements, but they can sometimes feel like a bit of a mismatch. When, say, a famous pro athlete is singing the praises of an economy car, or a major recording artist is recommending an app for finding part-time jobs, it can be hard not to think about the fact that there’s very little chance that they themselves use those products or services.

So it’s reassuring that Yoshinoya’s newest pitchman is someone who I could totally see inhaling a beef bowl. And I mean that literally, because it’s Kirby.

Yes, the perpetually prepared-to-eat Nintendo star is the gyudon chain’s latest spokescharacter. Under the Kirby and Yoshinoya Operation Full Stomach campaign, there’s a bunch of cute and cool exclusive collectibles that can be yours for completing the very doable task of eating beef bowls.

Starting August 8, Yoshinoya will be offering a Kirby set with a beef bowl and your choice of salad or apple juice (600 yen [US$3.95] for a small beef bowl or 633 for a medium). In addition to a takeout bag illustrated with Kirby’s cheerfully chewing face, you also get a special Yoshinoya Kirby figure.

During the first round of Operation Full Stomach, which takes place from August 8 to 31, there are four possible figures to receive.

▼ The food coma Kirby on the bottom left, with an empty bowl, is especially cute.

Round 2 starts on September 3 (apparently Kirby needs two days of rest) and runs until September 30, and has three possible figures.

Now, you might have noticed that while the actual Kirby sets come in paper Kirby containers, the figures’ bowls look more like the reusable round ones Yoshinoya uses for serving its eat-in meals. There actually is a way to get your hands on real versions of those, but it’ll take a little luck. During Operation Full Stomach, if you’ve downloaded the Yoshinoya smartphone app and show the campaign code at the register when paying for any Yoshinoya meal (not just the Kirby sets), you’ll receive one app point for every 500 yen you spend, and each app point can be used as an entry into a drawing for a set of three Kirby Yoshinoya melamine bowls (small, medium, and large-size).

A total of 500 sets will be given out, but even if you’re not lucky enough to snag one, there is one more way to get the medium-size bowl. Starting September 2, the Yoshinoya online shop will be selling an Operation Full Stomach Set that includes the Kirby bowl and two packs of frozen beef bowl toppings for 3,999 yen.

There is a bit of fine print to be aware of regarding the campaign dates. As mentioned above, Round 1 of Operation Full Stomach runs from August 8 to 30, and Round 2 from September 3 to 30. However, each round officially ends at 8 p.m. on its final day, and Yoshinoya also says that the offers are good “while [figure] supplies last,” so it’s probably best to take a page from Kirby’s playbook and eat as soon as possible.

Source, images: PR Times
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