Double the Sauce for McDonald’s New Celebrity Partnership

Forbes reports that during the first months of the pandemic, McDonald’s trimmed its marketing spend by 70%. The fast-food chain took on a new marketing approach of partnering with celebrities to create their own signature meals.

McDonald’s announced on Twitter that a new meal is coming in the month of May. This new meal is from a partnership with Grammy-nominated Kpop band, the Bangtan Boys, also known as BTS. 

BTS is a seven-member K-pop boy band that works with Big Hit Entertainment. In June 2013, the band grew in fame due to the release of their album 2 Cool 4 School.

The BTS meal will include a 10-piece chicken McNuggets, a medium Coca-Cola and medium fries. What makes it so special is that it was inspired by the McDonald’s menu in South Korea and includes Sweet Chili and Cajun dipping sauces.

This is the first Mcdonald’s celebrity meal to be available globally. On May 26, the BTS meal will officially be available in the United States, Canada, parts of the Caribbean, and several other countries. Entering into June, the meal will be available in 50 countries. 

McDonald's USA chief marketing officer, Morgan Flatley said in a statement, "[w]e’re excited to bring customers even closer to their beloved band in a way only McDonald’s can – through our delicious food – when we introduce the BTS signature order on our menu next month."

McDonald’s has partnered with other celebrities before including Travis Scott and J Balvin. The Travis Scott meal included a quarter pounder with bacon, a medium Sprite, and fries with barbecue sauce. The J Balvin meal included a Big Mac, medium fries with ketchup, and an Oreo McFlurry.

According to Market Watch, the Travis Scott collaboration brought in greater sales in the second half of the year and attracted younger consumers. The Travis Scott meal was so popular that several locations even ran out of the key ingredients of quarter-pounder beef, bacon, slivered onions, and shredded lettuce. 

McDonald’s said in a memo sent to employees, "[w]e’ve created a program that’s so compelling to our customers that it’s stretching our world-class supply chain; and if demand continues at these levels, more restaurants will break supply.”

Forbes reports that Mcdonald’s has reversed pandemic-related declines with these new marketing strategies. Now, this deal with BTS expands McDonald’s global market and will surely target the BTS fanbase.

Have you ever tried one of these celebrity McDonald’s meals? Are you excited about the release of this BTS meal? Let us know @TXADPR