McDonald's has been piloting its $5 meal deal for a year. Here's how it got its start

McDonald’s $5 meal deal wasn’t born out of thin air.

The fast food chain’s franchisee have been piloting a similar promotion in upstate New York for over a year, Joe Erlinger, McDonald’s U.S. president, said during the Wall Street Journal Global Food Forum in Chicago on Wednesday.

“It was actually the idea of a group of franchisees,” Erlinger said, adding that those locations have “seen great success in building their business and building the baseline of their business.”

The $5 bundle formally launched yesterday, June 25, and is expected to last for about four weeks. It includes the choice of a McDouble or a McChicken sandwich, four piece chicken McNuggets, small fries and a small drink. Last week, the company said customers that spent at least $1 on Fridays would get free order of french fries. The deal is available every Friday through the end of 2024 but customers have to make that purchase on the McDonald’s app.

Erlinger said what “the consumer needs is affordability,” and the bundle is one way the burger giant is responding to American outrage over inflation, which has driven down discretionary spending.

When asked if McDonald’s had increased its menu prices, Erlinger acknowledged that the chain had indeed raised the cost of its items by 40% since 2019. In an open letter published in May, Erlinger pushed back on claims that the restaurant had jacked up its prices by 100%.

The french fries maker is also leveling the playing field for new franchisees by creating a common program and bar for entry, Erlinger added. U.S. McDonald’s stores are primarily operated by franchise owners, which make up 90% of locations nationwide.

McDonald’s is aiming to add 900 new locations in the U.S. by 2027, which it hopes will be operated by franchisees.

Over the long term, McDonald’s Erlinger said the chain is considering how it deals with the protein consumption changes.

“We sell more chicken today as a brand than we sell beef,” Erlinger, who worked as a manager at a McDonald’s location in Chicago when he was 30, said.