βurgerβusiness

McDonald’s new Premium McWrap is more than a new menu item, it is, in restaurant parlance, a new “platform,” meaning different varieties can be added. Part of its appeal is that almost anything can be rolled in a flour tortilla and added as a McWrap LTO without requiring major crew retraining. The first three varieties [...]

McDonald’s Corp. CEO Don Thompson explained the company’s poor showing in the first quarter by stressing once again that the Informal Eating Out (IEO) marketplace is a zero-sum game where survival and growth come at the expense of competitors. “Our growth is going to come from taking market share,” Thompson told analysts. The “thoughtful and [...]

While Burger King manically adds new items by the dozen, McDonald’s and Wendy’s next week will introduce new mid-price chicken sandwiches with little risk because the tortilla and flatbread platforms have been tried and proven successful elsewhere for years. McDonald’s McWrap is another idea it borrows from its European operations (where beef and shrimp varieties [...]

[Updated with McDonald's Corp. comment] With quick-service restaurant competition heavily dependent on the buzz and interest generated by new products, both McDonald’s and Burger King are auditioning new limited-time menu stars. Getting a tryout at McDonald’s is a three-item line of McWraps, while Burger King is looking at a new value-priced item, the $1 BK [...]

Jim Skinner’s last McDonald’s Corp. shareholders meeting as its CEO today followed the script of so many meetings that preceded it. Skinner and Don Thompson—McDonald’s president-COO, who succeeds him as CEO on July 1—vowed to stay a course that has been reaping rewards (such as the 8.9% jump in Q1 comp sales). A parade of [...]

Prepare for a parade of new indulgent burgers, flatbread sandwiches and wraps at the high end of the price spectrum. In the past week, top executives at both McDonald’s and Wendy’s have signaled their desire to develop new premium-price items to balance value-menu and mid-price foods added last year in the face of an economy [...]

“The headline is, ‘We’re staying on the move in 2012,’ ” McDonald’s CEO Jim Skinner told analysts today in announcing Q4 and full-year 2011 sales results. But if that was the headline, the subhead was “So operators should stop squawking.” Skinner and other McDonald’s executives were addressing Wall Street analysts in their conference call, but [...]

Here’s what the world of burgers has on its menu this morning:  ● Hungry Jack’s, the Australian franchisee of Burger King, promises major announcements tomorrow (10/18), likely to encompass significant shifts in its brand and market positioning. The 330-plus-unit operation gave an early indication of its future style last month with its decision to add [...]

◙ Wendy’s/Arby’s Corp. executives have labeled 2011 “a transition year” as they “explore strategic alternatives” for Arby’s (i.e. try to find a buyer for it). But it’s clear the big picture includes continuing to revamp the Wendy’s menu with new wraps, burgers, chicken and more. The Fresh Wraps line of  tortilla wraps that Wendy’s tested [...]

Continuing its unusual openness about test-market menu items, McDonald’s today announced via Twitter that it is testing yet another new chicken item. Called Fresh Garden Wraps, the full-size tortilla wraps are in Orlando, Fla., stores, priced at $3.49 alone or $5.59 in combo meals. Fresh Garden Wraps, nearly identical in name and similar in style [...]