One limited-time offer is not like the other. Both might fill a demand for something special, or an operator need to increase frequency among existing customers.
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The Bottom Line: The chain continued to be a juggernaut last quarter, with strong sales and traffic growth, despite frequent social media complaints about shrinkflation or other challenges.
Reality Check: Old-guard chains are finding the alternative operations to be persistently effective side hustles.
The Bottom Line: The fast-casual chain’s problems following new menu debuts in 2021 and 2022 show that adding new items isn’t always the right idea.