I remember during my first week’s of college enjoying nothing better than eating a sausage with loads of onions, peppers and chili sauce from a mobile vendor outside the gates of my university. The food was outstanding, but so was the atmosphere. I didn’t realize then that I was witnessing the future of food franchising.
Mobile food franchises like ZooHoo and FishTales have taken this grassroots eating concept and tried to spread it around America. Advertising Age has examined the rise of mobile eateries in a recent article. Their theory is that van-based based businesses owe a lot of their success to popular interest in new ethnic cuisine. They mention Korean, El Salvadorean and Thai food concepts, street food essentially, that are reaching new markets simply by driving to them.
They’ve allowed those flavors to more easily surface and spread through cities and allow more people to try them,” Kazia Jankowski, associate culinary director at Sterling Rice Group, an agency that tracks restaurant and culinary trends, told AA. “They’ve allowed for those flavors to enter the mainstream via a different way and we’re seeing those kinds of flavors make their way into more brick-and-mortar establishments.”
But even as traditional eateries look to embrace the spirit of mobile cuisine, many industry leaders from food franchising are expanding into the mobile market. Chipotle’s launched a chain called Shop House, and there’s an interesting concept on the way called 100 Montaditos.
This article suggests that in this struggling economy, mobile food franchises are the best course for entrepreneurs looking to get an edge on the competition.
Last year, we featured a blog post in our regular ‘Franchising Abroad’ series from Sweden. In the post, I mentioned my interest in the interior architecture of Swedish McDonald’s, which borrow a lot from popular Swedish design fans from companies like Ikea. McDonald’s is in the process of renovating up to 800 stores around America.
Nation’s Restaurant News was recently given an exclusive tour behind the new McDonald’s. I was interested to see that so many of them shared that similar Scandanavian aesthetic. You can view a slide show of the new McDonald’s here. They also interview Bryan Consolo, a McDonald’s franchisee who’s remodelled all three of the McDonald’s he owns in Northern Illinois. He’s received “overwhelmingly positive” to the redesign and also cited a similar European vibe to the new McDonald’s.
The new McDonald’s are big on chrome, colored bar stools and hanging light fixtures. Other new features include a double drive-thru, flat-screen TVs, Wi-Fi areas, and according to Max Carmona of McDonald’s, other “amenities in reimaged locations (that are) more relevant in consumers’ everyday lives.”
But how will these new renovations go down in the heartland? Part of McDonald’s eternal appeal seems to be their utilitarian layout. Will people in suburban areas really go to McDonald’s because the stores have a fancier, more European design? Franchisees like Consolo seem happy and perhaps that is all the proof we need that this initiative will thrive.
McDonald’s is gearing up for a massive 2012 which will reach a crescendo during the Summer Olympics, in which the Golden Arches will be one of the elite sponsors.
According to Reuters, McDonald’s and the International Olympic Committee will announce plans for a massive new 8-year contract which will see McDonald’s remain a partner with the Olympics movement through 2020, which would include the 2014 winter Games in Sochi, the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, the 2018 Pyeongchang winter Olympics and the 2020 Summer Olympics.
For McDonald’s, the Olympics offers a great opportunity to build its global brand and reach a massive audience. It’s relationship with the Games goes back to 1976, so they clearly see the value of partnering with the great sports competition.
They have big things planned for 2012 Olympics in London, with work underway on the largest McDonald’s in the world around the Olympic village.
While the IOC do not release the terms of their sponsorship deals, Reuters believes the contract will be in the range of six figures:
“McDonald’s is one of 11 top sponsors who contribute an estimated $100 million each for every two-Games package of one winter and one summer Games though the IOC does not release details on individual deals.”
Every year, new business books come out promising a new mantra that define how entrepreneurs approach their task of innovation. One of the most head-turning books from 2012 is just available now. It comes from the head of Yum! Brands, David Novak, and it’s called Taking People With You: The Only Way to Make Big Things Happen.
This is a business book for big thinkers. Novak has brought many innovations to American, including the introduction of Cool Ranch flavoring to Doritos. His contribution to franchising has of course been legendary. Not only has he introduced products like KFC’s Crispy Strips and the Meat Lovers’ pizza at Pizza Hut, but he has overseen the massive rise of franchises like KFC both at home and abroad. His wisdom will be of great interest to many aspiring leaders. He sat down with Inc Magazine to reveal some of those ideas.
One of the most interesting aspects of this interview, I thought, was Novak’s habit of making unannounced visits to his restaurants. He described the strategy as such:
No. 1, I’m there to see the business the way the customer sees it so you’re really there to see the world the way that it is, not necessarily the way you’d like to think it is. The second thing is, once you see that and you understand what the reality is, then I think you pass that on and you provide coaching to the organization on the things I think we can do better. Third thing, a lots of times you go in, you get a great experience, you get the opportunity to recognize people and say, “hey, that was really terrific. I had a great experience and way to go.”
There’s loads of great insight in this article and in Novak’s book. If you’re looking to do some big thinking about business this year, this is a good place to start.
Here’s the latest salvo in the coffee wars: McDonald’s has launched a bold series of mobile ads to promote their Hot McCafe range.
The geotargeted ads will provide an innovative platform for McDonald’s to reach new customers. If they happened popped up on your iPhone yet, you can see them over on the Mobile Commerce Daily website.
This is McDonald’s second mobile campaign this month. They were promoting their breakfast menus via fun digital games. It’s just more proof that the future lies in mobile for franchises.
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