Burger King (NYSE:BKW) Vs McDonald (NYSE:MCD)

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By Ross Schwartz on November 13, 2014 Consumer Staples

Recent buzz is that McDonald (NYSE:MCD)’s on going failure is due to the shift in healthier eating trend. The trend no doubt exists, consumers now a days are more and more health conscious as the consequences of junk foods are daunting as compared to that moment of pleasure it gives to our taste buds. So according to this theory, McDonald (NYSE:MCD) claims the company is suffering to a large extent. The company announced a 3.3% fall in sales for its third quarter. But on the other hand, Burger King (NYSE:BKW), which is also a well -known name in the market of junk food has recently announced a 2.4% increase in the same store sales and a 7.7% increase in constant currency, all in their third quarter. So the question that arises now is, what is Burger King (NYSE:BKW) doing differently that this shift in healthier eating trends isn’t affecting them.

According to CEO Daniel Schwartz, the third quarter has been a blessing for the company as not only did they witness string sales, but an overall growth globally. In the US and Canada, the sales broke old records set in 2012. All this has been made possible due to new strategies in place, and a combination of new products and value offerings.

Looking into the company’s meal deals, the company didn’t make any healthy menu, instead they were product launches made on a large scale. For example, its BBQ Bacon whopper deal, was just boosted through its digital and social media campaigns. So here we can see, that the deal isn’t a healthy food option, and has cholesterol written all over it. But it’s won the crowd over. It’s not that the healthy eating trend hasn’t set in, it’s just that it’s more of a niche. Hence blaming your company’s losses on shift in eating trends sounds more like an excuse than a reason.

According to the latest conference that took place between the McDonald (NYSE:MCD) executives and analysts, it seemed like McDonald (NYSE:MCD) just had a list of excuses prepared instead of any strong strategy to handle the situation. They did have plans to reinvent the company but details weren’t disclosed.

The Burger King (NYSE:BKW) call was more focused on the list of success on how well the company is doing overall. Discussions on what worked and what did not, as well as the big launches like the Ultimate Cheeseburger, King deals, value meal and the Big King sandwich.

When comparing the two, Burger King (NYSE:BKW)’s bacon deal spells out unhealthy and yet hasn’t slowed sales. So, maybe it’s a good idea for McDonald (NYSE:MCD) to improve its product development team. The problem, it seems lies with the product development team, as over the years, McDonald (NYSE:MCD)’s hasn’t introduced a scrumptious menu, instead its long and complicated list of meals. Whereas Burger King (NYSE:BKW)’s management team keeps coming up with new and fresh idea for meals that are marketed well.