American restaurant chains are generally increasing their concessions to attract fast food customers with limited budgets.
Catering giant McDonald's is keeping up with its rivals and trying to please American consumers who are becoming more and more frugal under high inflation.
On Wednesday, McDonald's announced that it will launch a five-dollar “poor guy package” next month in the US, which includes a four-piece McDonald's cheeseburger/chicken sandwich, small fries, a drink, and McLean chicken (the poor guy package that has always been sold domestically is a 13.9 yuan two-piece set).
The promotion will start on June 25 and will last for about a month.
Last month, McDonald's announced that it would launch a promotional plan. However, according to reports, many McDonald's franchisees objected to the previous promotion plan, believing that it would not bring the expected traffic, and that the cost was too high. It wasn't until last week that the $5 four-piece “poor guy package” plan was finally approved by the McDonald's Dealers Association.
According to data from market research company Revenue Management Solutions, compared with the same period in 2023, the number of customers at fast food restaurants in the US fell by 3.5% in the first three months of this year. Chain stores such as Starbucks and Wendy's have seen a drop in customer traffic in recent quarters compared to the same period last year.
Restaurant chains generally launched promotions this year to cope with the decline in customer traffic. Many consumers are tired of the high cost of eating out, causing them to eat less often and spend less when eating.
Food inflation in the restaurant industry has slowed in the past year, but the cost of eating out is much higher than before. Fast food prices in April were 33% higher than 2019 levels, according to US Department of Labor data.
Wall Street News has mentioned that the global consumer market is ushering in a new trend: in an environment where high inflation and high interest rates coexist, consumers are abandoning big brands and embracing “low prices.” Restaurant chains including JackinTheBox, Chili's, and Applebee's are increasing their discounts to attract fast food customers with limited budgets. With its low price strategy, the “poor ghost supermarket” Allezi has also risen globally.