Burger King Worldwide Inc.’s 15-cent chicken-nugget deal, one of the highest-profile examples of price wars in the fast-food industry, is ending after the company ran low on supplies.
The burger chain, which began offering a 10-pack of nuggets for $1.49 on 6 October, said it plans to revert to the old $2.99 price at the end of this week.
The special “performed well, in line with our expectations,” Eric Hirschhorn, chief marketing officer for North America, said in an e-mailed statement. “We are quickly selling through our promotional supply.”
The fast-food industry is relying more heavily on discounts as competition mounts and consumers flock to newer options such as Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. Taco Bell introduced a $1 menu nationwide in August, and McDonald’s Corp. is selling a 20-pack of McNuggets for $5. In lieu of the nugget deal, Burger King has started advertising a new four-cheese Whopper burger.
While the deals help attract customers, fast-food chains have struggled to reignite sales. McDonald’s said earlier this week that domestic same-store sales fell 1 per cent in October, the sixth straight monthly decline. While Burger King’s third-quarter revenue rose 1.4 per cent, the gain still trailed analysts’ estimates.
Burger King has about 7,360 restaurants in North America, compared with more than 14,200 US stores for McDonald’s.
Bloomberg News, edited by Hospitality Ireland
