Fast food restaurants have been America’s bread and butter for as long as anyone can remember. It’s hard to imagine a time when they didn’t exist because they make up such a potent fabric of society today.
And yet, while many fast food chains have posted consistently solid numbers year in and year out, it looks as though one particular restaurant missed a step recently: Wendy’s.
This quarter, Wendy’s same-store sales growth numbers didn’t meet the expectations that Wall Street had predicted. This has left people blaming the state of the country’s inflation, which is currently at decades-high levels.
It seems that with the way inflation is today, people simply aren’t buying burgers and fries the way they used to. Houses that have lower incomes are avoiding discretionary purchases as much as they possibly can, and fast food chains such as Wendy’s are feeling the brunt of it.
Given the fact that Wendy’s was already in some steep competition with fellow fast food companies such as Burger King, KFC, and McDonald’s, this recent slip doesn’t look good for them.
However, it’s not as though McDonald’s hasn’t been on shaky ground either. A handful of fast food chains have felt the growing pains of a changing inflation rate, leading many to consider lowering their prices.