McDonald’s Leaked Memo Reveals Panic Over Losing Young Customers

A leaked McDonald’s memo has revealed the fast food chain is concerned with losing young, health-conscious customers to rivals such as Subway.

Although the Golden Arches may be ubiquitous — the US alone has 18,590 McDonald’s restaurants — an internal company memo obtained by Advertising Age reveals the burger franchise doesn’t even rank among the top 10 restaurant chains for “millennials.”

Who are “millennials”? The definition seems to vary depending on who you speak to. McDonald’s defines them as 18-to-32-year-olds, while restaurant consultant Technomic classes them as 19-to-34-year-olds. But two things are clear, according to the McDonald’s memo: These young consumers are essential, and they’re leaving burger chains behind. There are also 59 million to 80 million of them in the US alone.

This is why McDonald’s is preparing to launch the McWrap. Referred to in the memo as a “Subway buster,” the company describes how the McWrap “affords us the platform for customization and variety that our millennial customer is expecting of us.” The memo adds:

“Our customers are consistently telling us, particularly millennials, they expect variety, more choices, customization and their ability to be able to personalize their food experience. […] In fact, they have told us that if we did not offer McWrap, 22% of these incremental customers would have gone to Subway.”

The McWrap launches on April 1 (early reviews have already appeared) and will be offered in three varieties: sweet chili chicken, chicken and bacon, and chicken and ranch. The wraps will vary from 360 to 600 calories.

When asked to comment on the leaked memo by Advertising Age, McDonald’s simply said, “Millennials have and will continue to be an important audience for us at McDonald’s.”

Are you one of the “millennials” referenced in the McDonald’s memo? Could the McWrap tempt you back to the Golden Arches?

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