McDonald's to Offer McPick 2 Menu

By Julie Jargon 

McDonald's Corp. has come up with a new value menu that it hopes will attract cost-conscious customers after years of losing traction with its existing low-price selection.

The new "McPick 2" menu, starting on Jan. 4, will allow customers to pick a pair of items for a total of $2 from among four choices: the McDouble and McChicken sandwiches, a small order of french fries, and mozzarella sticks.

Finding the right value offering has been a central trouble spot for a company that otherwise has started making progress in the turnaround of its critical U.S. market. McDonald's has struggled for several years to find the right formula, with previous tweaks to its Dollar Menu failing to catch on with customers--including the "Extra Value Menu" in 2012 and the "Dollar Menu & More" the following year, both of which offered a selection of products at different prices.

Analysts have been expecting the switch to a two-for-$2 deal, which McDonald's was discussing with franchisees.

"We view the move toward a long-term national value platform as positive for McDonald's," Nomura Securities analyst Mark Kalinowski said in a note last month. He said the recent "Dollar Menu & More" had confused some customers and failed to ignite growth.

Other fast-food chains also have struggled to find the right pricing balance on their menus, including Wendy's Co., which recently said it's figured out that the sweet spot for its customers is bundled meals costing $4 to $6. Wendy's last month introduced a "4 for $4" deal--consisting of a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger, chicken nuggets, fries and drink--and later cited the effort's success as the reason for raising its sales-growth guidance for the year.

McDonald's McPick menu will be available for five weeks, after which time the company might alter the items.

Write to Julie Jargon at [e-mail]

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 16, 2015 17:02 ET (22:02 GMT)

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