McDonald’s is the Most Aspirational Retail Food Brand in the U.S.

Naysayers filled the airways, newspapers, social media, and trade magazines yesterday when McDonald’s reported negative sales numbers once again calling for ‘change’ or simply calling out McDonald’s for their personal priority.  The naysayers were for the most part uninformed Micro analyst wannabes wonderful space filler for the press, and nothing more than a distraction for industry.

McDonalds is changing, evolving, and garnering contemporized relevance.  McDonalds has led the industry breaking long traditions of chain restaurant brand protectionism as regular readers of this blog know. Monthly sales numbers aside, McDonald’s AUV’s are the gold standard of the QSR industry.  The simple fact that there is not another QSR that would not like to trade AUV’s numbers with them should be enough. 

How can anyone be surprised when all leading economic indicators for three months have pointed to a slowing Europe, slow Japan, and deflationary fears here in the U.S.?  Industry sector leaders often reflect both the economy and the trend of the economy first.  McDonald’s is the global industry standard. 

Last month when Foodservice Solutions® released it’s Top 20 Grocerants for 2014 McDonald’s was the highest ranking chain restaurant on the list. McDonald’s is evolving with the consumer as fast or faster than most other legacy chain restaurants. Technology has evolved, and consumers are more time starved, than ever before leveraging new technology for food information, and finding new points of fresh food distribution at the same time. 

While consumers have more part-time jobs there are still 45+ million U.S. households receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance from the USDA (Food Stamps).  Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru™ believes it’s the primary reason McDonald’s was found to be the restaurant chain grocery shoppers would like to visit more often.  Simply put for millions of Americans McDonald’s is Aspirational.

The Micro analyst wannabes just might take a minute to reflect on what a treat it would be for a single parent and child to go out for a meal.  McDonald’s is a powerhouse of a brand and while overlooked by the elite, it is a treat for the street. Did your kids get to go to McDonalds?

McDonalds is a dynamic company not static.  They have tried, bone in wings, mix and match game day meal boxes, and customized touch ordering all within the last 12 months.  No company is perfect, but no one can fault McDonalds for being static, for brand protectionism, or for having the highest AUV’s in the industry.  Success does leave clues and everyone else is following McDonald’s. 

Are you trapped doing what you have always done and doing it the same way?  Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions 5P’s of Food Marketing can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.