The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2024
Kinryu Ramen turned a court-ordered dragon tail removal into Osaka's favourite story
Forced to cut its dragon sign's tail, Kinryu added a teardrop and let a neighbour's crab hold it—turning bad news into national affection.
Kinryu Ramen
The solution
The Kinryu Ramen Dotonbori branch's three-dimensional dragon signboard has been an Osaka landmark for about 30 years. A real-estate company owning the adjacent land sued, arguing that the roughly one-metre dragon tail encroached on its property; after the restaurant lost in the first and second trials, it decided not to appeal further.
Rather than quietly cutting off the tail, Kinryu turned the removal into a public event. In the early hours of 23 August 2024, Pop Kogei—the workshop that had installed the sign about three decades earlier—cut the tail off with a power tool while watching crowds applauded.
The shop then designed the cut's cross-section, had the exposed wall painted neatly, and added a light-blue teardrop under the dragon's left eye to show its sadness. Collaborating with the neighbouring crab restaurant's 3D sign, they made the severed tail reappear held in a crab's claw, turning a legal defeat into an ongoing, humorous Osaka story.
The tale went nationwide. It won a Bronze Spikes Asia 2025 in Outdoor (Use of Humour), Gold at the 2025 PR Awards Asia-Pacific for Media Relations and Best Creative Idea, and a MAD STARS Crystal, while significantly raising the brand's likeability.
Why it worked
- Choreographing the removal as a farewell ceremony made a legal defeat feel like a beloved mascot's moment, so even the loss produced affection.
- The teardrop and the crab's claw serialised the story, giving the media and public new chapters to share.
- Handing the moment to the original craftsman turned the removal into a human story rather than a corporate statement.
- It was nearly free: the story itself was the campaign, and the public did the distribution.
What can be applied
When a loss is unavoidable, stop minimizing it—choreograph it so the public does the telling. A setback turned into a shared cultural moment builds more affection than a victory.
Aftermath
The tale of the dragon's tail earned Kinryu a Bronze Spikes Asia 2025 (Outdoor: Use of Humour), Gold at the 2025 PR Awards Asia-Pacific and a MAD STARS Crystal, and the brand reported that the campaign greatly improved its likeability as the story became part of Osaka's folklore.
Sources
- Tale of the Dragon's Tail
- 金龍ラーメン「Tale of the Dragon's Tail」がSpikes Asia 2025でブロンズを受賞
- Teary dragon: Osaka ramen shop forced to cut tail off signboard
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