At its recently concluded franchise convention, Burger King revealed a new modular play system for kids younger than 10, featuring a maze of tunnels and towers designed to look like a beige-and-orange castle, complete with quick slides and a ball pit.
It’s an interesting update given that other major fast-food chains appear to be moving away from children’s areas. It’s also notable because this is Burger King, a chain that for years wanted to lure more families but always seemed to revert to its core customers of young dudes eager for big burgers, preferably at a discount.
These days, Burger King is as much about families as anything else. And it’s not just the play places—which are optional. The company’s desire for a broader demographic can be seen in its menu, its marketing efforts and even the company’s remodels.
“At our heart and soul, we were always a family brand,” Joel Yashinsky, chief marketing officer for Burger King in the U.S. and Canada, said in an interview. “So you will see that in the work we do, from advertising, from social media, a brand that’s welcoming and fun, but not at anyone’s expense.”
Burger King’s family-unfriendly image was symbolized by the chain’s “creepy king” mascot, which debuted in 2004 in the company’s ads and eventually retired in 2011. The company has brought the king back a couple of times for special events since 2015. Yet even when Burger King used the king in its advertisements, executives acknowledged that his creepiness turned off some customers.
Meanwhile, rival McDonald’s and its ultra-popular Happy Meals were attracting families in droves. The result: That eight-year run turned a gap between the two chains into a canyon.
Burger King’s average-unit volumes declined during the eight years those ads ran, a period when rival McDonald’s grew by nearly a third. Today, Burger King’s average-unit volumes are less than half those of its much larger rival.
In short: Burger King was undone by its creepy mascot.
“There were a number of learnings we had from creepy king,” Yashinsky said. “And we’ve moved away from creepy king because he had limited appeal.”
Yashinsky has some experience in this. He came to Burger King in April from Applebee’s, but previously spent 17 years with McDonald’s, working in various marketing roles, meaning he was there during much of the period when the Chicago-based giant opened that volume gap.
His task now is to broaden Burger King’s customer base, not just with families but with younger consumers who remain crucial to the fast-food business.
Burger King learned recently that it could generate sales momentum with promotional tie-ins, menu items and toys and figurines that appeal to kids and some young adults. The company generated some success with its How to Train Your Dragon Meal earlier this year.
“It opened our eyes to the kids' meal program, and that’s a big insight,” Yashinsky said.
The company recently introduced King Jr. Meal toys from the Scooby Doo cartoon that have interchangeable costumes. It is also bringing back plastic Halloween buckets.
On Monday, the company revealed its now-annual Halloween meal, a “Monster Menu” featuring a Jack O’ Lantern Whopper featuring bacon and an orange bun colored with paprika, a Franken-Candy Sundae, Mummy Mozzarella Fries and Vampire Nuggets shaped like bats and fangs.
Burger King's crowns remain a kid favorite.
Burger King has also courted young adults, first with the Million Dollar Whopper promotion last year and more recently its Whopper By You campaign, each of which invited consumers to create their own versions of the chain’s signature burger.
“There are some brands that tend to use celebrities,” Yashinsky said. “You’re going to see us put the brand in the hands of our guests.”
The company’s remodeled restaurants are similarly aimed at a broader audience. While the play places are optional, Burger King’s new “Sizzle” redesign features some larger booths specifically designed for families, particularly those with young children.
And of course, Burger King still has its famous paper crown. A location about 20 minutes away from the chain’s Miami headquarters featured dozens of the crowns placed throughout the restaurant.
Whether Burger King can ultimately give all those crowns away and fill those play places remains to be seen. But the fast-food chain certainly has come a long way from that Creepy King era.
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