I think a company is muddling its way into the future. McDonalds serves 70 million customers a day in 119 countries as the world’s largest quick-serve brand. That quick-serve label seems to be one that the corporate muckety mucks want to stick with on one hand, while trying to mimic the trendy, customizable fast-casual model on the other hand. Who pays for the dichotomy? It’s the store owners who are expected to meet the drive-thru 90-seconds-or-less goal while the line workers stand in back reading the directions on how to assemble a Premium McWrap on the rare occasion one is ordered.
The McWrap seems to be at the apex of the chain’s challenge, as pointed out in the Dec. 4, 2014, issue of The Wall Street Journal, which says that the menu item was introduced in 2013 “to compete with the fresh, customizable food for which 20- and 30-something customers have been turning to fast-casual restaurants.” That is code for Chipotle. Everyone, including McDonald’s, wants to be them. Wraps are not logical quick-serve fare to a bam-slam-get-the-order-out burger joint.
Actually, anyone who thinks McDonald’s is a burger joint is out of touch. That may have been the case a few years ago when the chain had 85 menu items. Now it has more than 120 items with something for absolutely everyone to compete with absolutely every restaurant. That is where McDonald’s has lost its way—or gone greedy. Chick-fil-A is doing well? Let’s add premium chicken sandwiches. In Q3 this year on its promotional menu, McDonald’s added a Premium Crispy Chicken Bacon Clubhouse Sandwich and a Premium Grilled Chicken Bacon Clubhouse Sandwich.
Somewhere in the back—as part of its roots—is McDonald’s iconic Big Mac and Quarter Pounder with Cheese. But then along came fast-casual concepts like Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Umami Burger, Elevation Burger and Epic Burger, to name a few. Ahh. It turns out customers want premium ingredients and interesting flavors. Enter McDonald’s newest: Jalapeno Double (burger topped with crispy and sliced jalapenos, white cheddar cheese and ranch sauce).
If there’s something not up for debate, it’s McDonald’s future plans to add more customization in which customers will be able to name the toppings they want. (That’s a main play from the fast-casual playbook.) And so, the behemoth fast-food chain is planning to not just blur the lines between fast food and fast casual. It’s morphing into fast casual. It’s up to the store owners to figure out how to be fast at that.
Tell me what you think.
Jody
