The Latest
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McDonald's cutting premium burgers from menu
Following its reduction to its late-night menu, the fast food chain is cutting its Signature Crafted Recipes from its menu, a strategy that falls in line with its desire to shorten drive-thru times.
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Having to share personal data turns consumers away from loyalty programs, study says
Conversely, 76% of surveyed Americans said they would be more likely to join a program that required just their name and phone number.
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ColumnShift Change: McDonald's hires franchise exec; Chick-fil-A adds new board members
This week's Shift Change highlights executive changes at McDonald's, Chick-fil-A, Dutch Bros Coffee, El Pollo Loco, CKE Restaurants and Black Bear Diner.
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Peet's expands Order Ahead service
The chain's customers can now buy coffee, food and beans for pickup through its mobile app, joining a throng of coffeehouses doubling down on convenience.
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Godiva to open 2,000 cafes in next 6 years
The chocolatier is entering a segment crowded by Starbucks, Dunkin' and Panera, but hopes to glean 40% of its sales from these cafes by 2024.
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Dunkin' pilots multi-tender options for loyalty program
Allowing customers to earn rewards no matter how they pay should keep the brand competitive while Starbucks and others revamp their programs to make it easier to earn points.
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Just Eat buys POS system Practi to lock down restaurant loyalty
The $8.7 million acquisition of the firm, which services independent restaurants and small chains, could strengthen Just Eat's restaurant portfolio.
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Restaurants adding surcharges to cover healthcare costs
Despite the added price, diners have been willing to pay additional fees that go toward employees' healthcare costs, paid time off and other benefits.
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OpinionMcDonald's bets personalization will keep diners lovin' it
The fast food giant's $300 million acquisition of Dynamic Yield reflects growing diner demand for engaging, digitally tailored brand interactions, says Wi5 CEO Prask Sutton.
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Schools ban meal delivery citing disruption, safety concerns
Some Michigan schools instituted the ban due to safety risks in giving building access to strangers, as well as the potential for allergic reactions or food-borne illnesses from delivered meals.
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Panera's new tech could make breakfast rise and shine
Breakfast delivery has grown 250% at the chain, which is launching an Amazon Go-like tap and pay system, new portable morning foods and a revamped coffee program to better target diners on the go.
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OpinionBurger King plans to treat chickens better, and now they're going plant-based. Where's McDonald's?
Improving its animal welfare standards and introducing more vegetarian options could drive profits and protect against public backlash, says Kenny Torrella, VP of public engagement at Mercy for Animals.
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Starbucks launches $1.3M 'Cup Fund' for UK recycling programs
Launched in partnership with environmental charity Hubbub, the fund will offer individual grants of up to $131,000 to support paper cup recycling initiatives in at least 10 U.K. locations.
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Uber Eats preps to expand into grocery, cloud kitchens in light of IPO
With Uber going public, its food delivery service is primed for growth so long as competition doesn't continue to eat into its market share.
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McDonald's cage-free egg progress signals an industry sea change
The chain claims to be 33% cage-free on its way to reach 100% by 2025, and analysts predict the move will bring these egg costs down.
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OpinionRethinking the brand experience beyond space and size
Without designing for experience, an overemphasis on size will leave customers hungry for more, says innovation agency T3's president Ben Gaddis.
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Column
Shift Change: Kona Grill appoints interim CEO; Subway gets a new CIO
This week's Shift Change highlights executive changes at Subway, Kona Grill and Farmer Boys.
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Deep DiveIt's not just McDonald's — restaurant CIOs are hungry for tech
"It's hard to look cool if you've got a pager that was from the 1980s still in use," said the founder of Aaron Allen & Associates.
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Uber Eats boosts delivery tracker transparency with colorful animations
The redesigned platform includes a five-step tracking bar and a "latest arrival time by" update in addition to the typical order ETA.
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Papa Murphy's acquired by MTY Food Group for $190M
The sale will give the take-and-bake pizza chain new capital investments that could help top line sales growth and increase franchisee profitability.
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Activist investor wants to take over J. Alexander's for $186M
The causal chain rejected the offer from Ancora Advisors, which owns 1.3 million shares of the company, saying the proposal would undermine shareholder value.
UPDATED: April 12, 2019 at 9:54 a.m. -
KFC parodies influencers with CGI hipster Colonel Sanders
The chain handed its Instagram account over to the "Virtual Influencer Colonel" and partnered with Dr. Pepper, TurboTax and Old Spice for the campaign.
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Caffè Nero cracks open Easter egg hunt for app users
The campaign returns for a second year after spurring 100,000 app downloads and 300,000 "egg-agements" in 2018.
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Restaurant website developer BentoBox gains over $16M in funding
The tech company has now garnered over $23 million in funding and plans to develop online ordering, POS and reservation features — reflecting restaurant demand for enhanced consumer-facing technology.
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Q&AJeni Britton Bauer on how simple goals can create a splendid brand
The founder of Jeni's Spendid Ice Creams shares what it takes to build a brand into a cult favorite, how to encourage creativity and what to look for in a team.
