| Yum! Brands News | |
| | Yum!Now News | |
| | Competitor Intelligence | |
| | Industry Trends | |
| | Policy & Regulatory News | |
| | Restaurant Technology | |
| | Investing in People | |
| | | |
| In a recent conversation with The Wall Street Journal, Yum! Brands CEO David Gibbs reflected on the events that occurred during his first year on the job, lessons learned and how he sees the future of the industry. "One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the power of authentic communication versus the formal written memo that somebody might send out. We gather up different groups of franchisees, corporate teams from all around the world on video calls. We get literally hundreds of questions going through the chat function—real time, unfiltered. We learn from that," said Gibbs. |
| In a story about leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, Yum! Brands CEO David Gibbs spoke about the value of "extreme transparency," saying that it mattered during the crisis and that it was "powerful to share everything, including saying ‘We don’t know.'" |
| Yum! Brands Chief Security Officer Steven Antoine received the Leadership Award at the 2020 Critical Event Management Impact Awards hosted by Everbridge. The program recognizes those who use the Everbridge Platform in a "unique, innovative and inspiring" way. |
| QSR Web asked QSR leaders, including Taco Bell CEO Mark King and KFC CMO Andrea Zahumensky, how the pandemic has made them change their approach to leadership and what they have learned about their companies. "I have learned that even during a time of such struggle and hurt, you can count on the Taco Bell family to do good for its communities, which is extremely humbling and motivating to me as a leader of the brand," said King. Zahumensky offered that "the year shed a light on what makes KFC such a resilient family and moving forward, I look forward to expanding our support for the communities where we live." |
| KFC India has announced its India Sahyog program, which aims to help local restaurants recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. "KFC’s India Sahyog will support 500 restaurants in strengthening their businesses over the next two years. This will in turn provide impetus to the growth of the restaurant industry," said Samir Menon, Managing Director, KFC India. |
| Research by TOP Data found that KFC is America's top chicken brand in 14 U.S. states. KFC did strongly in the northeast, as well as further out west in states like Oregon, Montana, North Dakota and Wisconsin. |
| KFC Gaming took to Twitter to announce the KFConsole, proclaiming that, “The console wars are over.” While there is no release date yet, it was announced that the console will have a feature that redirects heat to a newly devised Chicken Chamber that will keep chicken warm. |
| In celebration of Veganuary, KFC UKI is bringing back its signature vegan burger from January 4 until February 28. “The Imposter” was initially launched in June 2019 and sold out within four days. It has since been renamed the Original Recipe Vegan Burger and won the PETA award for Best Vegan Chicken Burger at its annual Vegan Food Awards in October. |
| To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Pizza Hut's stuffed crust, the chain is offering "Nothing But Stuffed Crust," which is a pizza-less ring of cheese-stuffed dough. The item is available from Tuesday until Thursday at participating locations in Dallas and Los Angeles. |
| Two Pizza Hut promotions from 2020 made the list of items that AdAge said kept "us safe, sane, comforted and laughing during the pandemic." AdAge called SÄVA, the Pizza Hut and Ikea pizza saver table "arguably the most unusual co-branded idea of the year." It also wrote that the Pizza Hut Original Pan Weighted Blanket was "a double dose of comfort for consumers overcome by 2020’s woes." |
| Joe DeCicco, a 70-year-old Taco Bell team member from South Daytona, Florida, was given a $6,095 tip by members of the local community. Tricia Phillippi, a local resident, created a Facebook group to help support local restaurant workers during the pandemic and DeCicco, known as "Taco Bell Joe," was voted the local favorite and had more than 300 people donate money to him. "This job has been an enormous blessing to me," DeCicco said. "It has bought out the best in me. I have wonderful customers, they give me strength, they give me wisdom, they give me vitality." |
| For 2021, Taco Bell is launching the new outer space-inspired drink called Midnight Berry Freeze, made with blue raspberry flavor mixed with a blackberry swirl. The new drink will be available for a limited time at participating locations and is priced at $2.59 for regular size and $2.79 for large. |
 |
“Pop Quiz” is Yum!Now’s regular feature in which we learn how our employees consume pop culture — what they’re watching, listening to, reading and following as well as which app they can’t live without. Their recommendations help us remain relevant, which is part of our R.E.D. (relevant, easy and distinctive) journey.
This week, meet Cassie Simms, associate manager for Yum! Executive Compensation. Simms helps design and implement rewards for our director and above population around the world including long-term incentives, short-term incentives and executive deferral programs. The main goal is to support our leadership teams with simple and easy ways to understand rewards.
When Simms isn’t working, she and husband, Tony, cheer on their boys, Colton, 8, and Camden, 5, who play baseball. |  | (For Yum! Eyes Only) |
|
|
| Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol said the company will not make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory but will instead “strongly encourage” employees to receive the vaccine. He added that Chipotle would cover any costs associated with receiving a vaccination. |
| Burger King has introduced the new "$1 Your Way Menu," which includes a bacon cheeseburger, Chicken Jr. sandwich, fries and a soft drink. "Unlike other value menus, all items on Burger King's newly unveiled menu are $1 a piece -- that's it," the company said in a statement. The chain will deposit $1 into "select customers' Venmo accounts" as part of the promotion for the new menu. |
| Unilever announced the expansion of its partnership with Burger King to supply the plant-based meat patties that the chain uses for its Whopper burgers in its Latin America, China and Caribbean locations. The chain uses patties for its plant-based Whopper from Vegetarian Butcher, which is a company that Unilever acquired in 2019. |
| Signs that warned about post-Brexit ingredient shortages spotted in a McDonald's South London branch caused concern from McDonald's customers and prompted a response of reassurance from the company. The signs read: "Due to supply challenges following Brexit, some of our menu may be unavailable or have ingredients missing e.g. lettuce, tomato." McDonald's said the signs were originally distributed as a contingency measure and should be taken down as there were no current supply issues. |
| McDonald’s franchise operators want a greater say in the company's digital moves. The board of the National Owners Association -- the independent association of McDonald’s franchisees -- said that there have been discussions "about establishing a national tech coop to monitor and develop better technology." “We are now spending $250 million in tech fees,” the board said. “You should have a vote in how that pot of money gets invested.” |
| Yahoo! Finance editor Brian Sozzi wrote about whether Popeye's fried chicken sandwich can maintain its domination in 2021. Sozzi offers his opinion that its popularity could slow down a touch in 2021 amid some new competition from Burger King and McDonald's. |
| Chick-fil-A announced that it will open two new locations in Puerto Rico in the next two years. The move is part of its plans to develop 10 to 15 locations on the island over the next five years. |
| Dunkin’ announced the launch of the new Extra Charged Coffee, which contains 20% more caffeine than its classic Hot and Iced Coffee. The new menu item is now available at participating restaurants across the U.S. “Since opening our doors more than 70 years ago, Dunkin’ has served a superior cup of coffee. Now, for the first time in our history, we’re offering the boldest and most diverse assortment of blends and customization options to fuel a new era of coffee at Dunkin’,” said Jill Nelson, VP of marketing and culinary at Dunkin’. |
| Forbes contributor Alicia Kelso offered her expectations for what's in store for the restaurant industry in 2021. Kelso wrote that real estate opportunities, menu value, automation and a breakfast comeback will be among the trends that will emerge and accelerate in fast-food. |
| The World Animal Protection estimated that about one million animals were saved as a result from Americans consuming more plant-based meat options. Joe Loria, meat reduction campaign manager for the organization, said that over 26 national chains are serving the Beyond Meat brand and more than 22 have added Impossible Food products to their menus. “It’s the consumers who hold the power, and by demanding more plant-based options they are helping to move these food chains toward a more sustainable and kinder future,” Loria added. |
| German scientists calculated that approximately the same amounts of carbon dioxide and methane gas are released when producing one pound of organic meat vs. a pound of non-organic meat. The scientists suggested that the price of both conventional and organic meats be adjusted to reflect their negative impact to the environment. "The large difference of relative external climate costs between food categories as well as the absolute external climate costs of the agricultural sector imply the urgency for policy measures that close the gap between current market prices and the true costs of food," the scientists wrote. |
| New dietary guidelines issued by the United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services now include recommendations for babies and toddlers for the first time. However, the guidance doesn't follow recommendations in the areas of alcohol and sugar intake that were addressed by a Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee's scientific report. The committee had recommended that no amount of added sugar should be allowed for a baby's development. |
| According to data compiled by the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), 29,684 jobs were lost across restaurants and casual dining firms in the U.K. in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic caused a 163% increase in job cuts. “The sector experienced rapid growth in outlets during 2014 to 2017 as successful chains added additional branches. But they frequently paid too much, whilst maintaining quality standards proved difficult," said CRR Director Professor Joshua Bamfield, who added that the pandemic has boosted the shake-up that the sector was already experiencing. |
| The CDC has prioritized foodservice employees as “other essential workers” and recommended they be included for early COVID-19 vaccinations, however, there has been no timeline announced. Foodservice employees would be included in the third round of vaccinations after residents of long-term care facilities, healthcare workers, people aged 75 and older and frontline essential workers. |
| Restaurant Business highlighted what was most relevant for the restaurant industry from the $900 billion relief package approved by Congress. It noted a revised Paycheck Protection Program, changes in taxation, breaks for small restaurants and help for customers. |
| Beginning Jan 1, 2021, 20 U.S. states and 32 cities and counties increased their minimum wages with half increasing their hourly wage to $15. Four more states and 18 more cities and counties are set to increase their minimum wages later in the year. The fact that a record number of states and localities lifted their base pay despite vehement opposition from business groups during the health crisis “is a big deal,” says Yannet Lathrop, a researcher and policy analyst at NELP. |
| Restaurant Business listed what tech innovations were broadly adopted by the restaurant industry in 2020 and included geolocation, QR codes and digital order integration. |
| Shake Shack and Papa John’s gave their employees holiday bonuses to thank them for their work amid the pandemic. Shake Shack gave its hourly workers an extra $250 to $400 at the end of 2020, while Papa John’s gave a total of $2.5 million worth of end-of-year bonuses. |
| Due to increased remote working, companies have shifted to offering flexible benefits because traditional benefits (like subsidized commuter costs) have become less relevant. “Some employers are offering extra paid time off for sick leave, quarantine or caregiving leave to help a sick family member,” said Burton Goldfield, president and CEO of TriNet, an organization that provides HR services to over 16,000 small- and medium-sized businesses. “While employers are looking at the total well-being of their employees in support of the pandemic, the enhanced and flexible benefit offerings as a response to COVID-19 may set the bar for the way talent is recruited and retained,” he added. |
|
|
