Will the real Burger King please stand up?
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This week, Burger King unveiled its new futuristic 20/20 store concept. Wow. The only thing missing from this concept is George Jetson and his boy Elroy.
This announcement follows another recent fast food makeover from McDonald’s that has designed a comfortable, café-like atmosphere. These makeovers are designed to increase dine-in traffic and compete head-to-head with fast causal restaurants like Panera and Atlanta Bread Company.
For many brands, creating a branded experience is a great way to bring the brand to life. For example, the Starbucks brand was built around the delivery of the “third place” experience. Other brands like Charmin and even Tide have thought out of the box (or package) to find ways to better connect with consumers and create a true experience around the brand.
But, what type of brand experience is Burger King trying to deliver? Will people remember their BK experience? Probably. Does the design reinforce its unique flamebroiled burgers? Well, the red flame chandeliers make me think so. Will it drive sales and increase brand loyalty? Only time will tell.
Let’s just hope its signature fragrance isn’t part of the welcome at the new stores.
Makeover for the King
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Recently, the fast-food chain restaurant Burger King has decided to undergo a restaurant makeover with a new store design called "20/20". This high priced renovation project was first unveiled at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport location on October 7th, 2009. CEO John Chidsey had this to say about the recent changes; "As we continue to grow and strengthen the brand worldwide, this new restaurant design exemplifies our vision for the brand's future and reinforces our goal of delivering superior products and positive guest experiences." Burger King's recent sales have fallen well below top competitors McDonald's and Wendy's; the store re-design is a "top-tier global brand initiative" to increase Burger King's global reputation and boost sales.
How synonymous are the phrases, 'fast-food restaurant' and 'intimate dining experience'? According to an AP Report, this remodeling project will come with a heavy bill, approximately $300,000 to $600,000 per restaurant. Some consumers are worried that this may not be the best use of money for the franchise. Is Burger King trying to become something that it's not? How successful will this intimate dining experience be for the burger chain?
Burger King is well aware that their brand needs to make some changes in order to keep up with other fast-food chains in the market, but is this the right approach?
View the full article on Ad Age.
Contributed by: Carrie Friedrich
