A Burger King franchisee confirmed Wednesday that the company has asked franchisees to consider temporarily dropping the price of their double cheeseburger to $1, a move likely aimed at igniting a burger battle with McDonald's Corp.
Burger King franchisees recently received a proposal from the company to cut the double cheeseburger's price to $1 for about four months, said John McNelis, president of the real estate division of Mirabile Investment Corp, which owns over 40 Burger Kings in the Memphis area. He said franchisees are slated to vote on the idea soon.
Burger King's double cheeseburger sells at different prices across the country, but Reuters reported Wednesday that at $1, Burger King's double cheeseburger would be priced at about half of what it now costs in most markets.
Dow Jones first reported Burger King's proposed $1 cheeseburger gambit Wednesday, citing two unnamed franchisees and a stock analyst. And it would be a bold gambit.
Late last year, a few McDonald's increased the price of its own double cheeseburger from $1 to $1.19 due to pressure from its franchisees, whose profit margins were increasingly being squeezed by rising ingredient costs. At the same time, McDonald's also added a second double cheeseburger to its menu, one that still cost $1, but had one fewer piece of cheese.
McNelis said that while he couldn't speak for other Burger King franchisees, cutting the price of a double cheeseburger to $1 "is clearly a proposal that would raise some eyebrows."
Burger King franchisees recently received a proposal from the company to cut the double cheeseburger's price to $1 for about four months, said John McNelis, president of the real estate division of Mirabile Investment Corp, which owns over 40 Burger Kings in the Memphis area. He said franchisees are slated to vote on the idea soon.
Burger King's double cheeseburger sells at different prices across the country, but Reuters reported Wednesday that at $1, Burger King's double cheeseburger would be priced at about half of what it now costs in most markets.
Dow Jones first reported Burger King's proposed $1 cheeseburger gambit Wednesday, citing two unnamed franchisees and a stock analyst. And it would be a bold gambit.
Late last year, a few McDonald's increased the price of its own double cheeseburger from $1 to $1.19 due to pressure from its franchisees, whose profit margins were increasingly being squeezed by rising ingredient costs. At the same time, McDonald's also added a second double cheeseburger to its menu, one that still cost $1, but had one fewer piece of cheese.
McNelis said that while he couldn't speak for other Burger King franchisees, cutting the price of a double cheeseburger to $1 "is clearly a proposal that would raise some eyebrows."
