Minnesota Star Tribune (October 27)
“The cheap-and-tasty paradigm that makes junk food so appealing is collapsing: Many of those guilty-pleasure treats aren’t so cheap anymore.” The American diet has been shaped by “irresistible sweets, savory snacks and fast food… with big flavors and minimal nutritional value for a century now.” Healthier habits and alternatives “have chipped away at that. But most of all, shoppers seem to be collectively drawing the line of how much is too much for junk food.” This has left “big food companies” struggling “to sell more food in recent years. Any revenue growth tends to come from price increases, not more unit sales.”
Tags: Appealing, Big flavors, Cheap, Collapsing, Diet, Fast food, Guilty-pleasure, Irresistible sweets, Junk food, Nutritional value, Price increases, Savory, Shoppers, Snacks, Tasty, Treats, Unit sales
Inc (April 19)
“The fast food business encourages fast thinking. Competitors strategize quickly in order to gain that extra percentage of margin, the chance to bite a tiny morsel out of their rivals. This leads them easily into going one way and then veering in the opposite direction. Perhaps one shouldn’t be surprised, then, at McDonald’s suddenly deciding it’s not quite as fancy as it promised to be.” After drifting upscale, it’s now “going another way” and simplifying its menu offerings.
Tags: Competitors, Fast food, Fast thinking, Margin, Menu, Rivals, Simplifying, Strategize, Upscale
New York Times (September 1)
“In the decade from 2002 to 2012, wages have stagnated or declined for the entire bottom 70 percent of the wage ladder.” Last Thursday “thousands of fast-food workers in 60 cities walked off their jobs, the latest in an escalating series of walkouts by low-wage workers demanding higher pay and the right to organize without retaliation.” The workers are seeking $15 an hour, up from their present $9. In demanding more reasonable wages, “the fast-food strikers have it right.”“In the decade from 2002 to 2012, wages have stagnated or declined for the entire bottom 70 percent of the wage ladder.” Last Thursday “thousands of fast-food workers in 60 cities walked off their jobs, the latest in an escalating series of walkouts by low-wage workers demanding higher pay and the right to organize without retaliation.” The workers are seeking $15 an hour, up from their present $9. In demanding more reasonable wages, “the fast-food strikers have it right.”
