{"id":70191,"date":"2023-10-08T10:13:31","date_gmt":"2023-10-08T14:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/investing\/why-mcdonalds-is-bringing-back-its-mcrib-for-the-umpteenth-time\/"},"modified":"2023-10-08T10:13:35","modified_gmt":"2023-10-08T14:13:35","slug":"why-mcdonalds-is-bringing-back-its-mcrib-for-the-umpteenth-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/?p=70191","title":{"rendered":"Why McDonald\u2019s is bringing back its McRib for the umpteenth time"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Call it the long goodbye, fast food-style.<\/p>\n

McDonald\u2019s
\n MCD,
\n -1.59%<\/bg-quote>
\n is planning to bring back its beloved McRib sandwich, just one year after giving the porky treat a \u201cfarewell tour.\u201d The menu item is set to return next month, according to the company. <\/p>\n

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\u201cWhile it won\u2019t be available nationwide, some lucky fans may find their favorite elusive saucy sandwich at their local McDonald\u2019s restaurants this November,\u201d McDonald\u2019s said in a statement to MarketWatch on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Not that the news should come as a complete surprise. McDonald\u2019s has always employed a scarcity tactic in marketing the McRib. That is, the key to the sandwich\u2019s appeal has been that it\u2019s never around for long, leaving fans (including Homer Simpson) to devour it while they can.<\/p>\n

As Restaurant Business, a trade publication, observed last year: \u201cIf consumers think there is a shortage of a product, or that it won\u2019t be around for long, they will rush out to get it. Think of the Great Toilet Paper Shortage in 2020 and how many people rushed out to get some the moment they thought they might run out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The publication quoted McDonald\u2019s CEO Chris Kempczinski about this approach, particularly in relation to the \u201cfarewell tour\u201d: \u201cThe McRib is the GOAT of sandwiches on our menu. And so like the GOATs Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, and others, you\u2019re never sure if they\u2019re fully retired or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

By all accounts, the strategy has worked: A\u00a0Wall Street Journal story once noted\u00a0that McDonald\u2019s sold more than 60 million of the sandwiches over a three-year period \u2014 in spite of the fact (or maybe because of the fact) it\u2019s available in such limited fashion.<\/p>\n

Further proof of the McRib\u2019s success: It has spawned some competition. In 2021, Arby\u2019s released a Country Style Pork Rib sandwich as a limited-time fall offering \u2014 and took cheeky aim at McDonald\u2019s in its marketing, referring to the McRib as a \u201crib-shaped sandwich\u201d (there\u2019s some truth to that \u2014 the McRib features a boneless pork patty with no actual ribs).<\/p>\n

Naturally, the McRib\u2019s return has sparked plenty of reaction on social media. One commenter on X (formerly Twitter) referred to the fact the sandwich seemingly has nine lives<\/a>. Another said that McDonald\u2019s retracting of its \u201cfarewell tour\u201d announcement has left them having \u201ctrust issues.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n