Day 041 - 28 Oct 94 - Page 30
1 repertoire of fast food restaurants in terms of Burger
2 King, pizza, the competition we talked about, we would hope
3 that the child influences what choice of restaurant the
4 parent selects within that category.
5
6 Q. Within that category?
7 A. Yes.
8
9 Q. So you are not talking about a case where the parent might
10 be intending to go out with his family, let us say, to the
11 local hotel for a sit-down Sunday lunch, or something like
12 that; you are talking about people who are inclined or
13 intending to go to another of your competitors; is that
14 right?
15 A. That is right. It is quite clear that the adult makes
16 the decision as to which sector they will be going to.
17
18 Q. Do you have any evidence to suggest that this advertising
19 to children has any effect in getting parents to go out to
20 a restaurant when they otherwise might not have done?
21 A. The only -- we do not have any information that says
22 that; it is very unlikely that it would happen other than,
23 perhaps, for a special occasion like a birthday party.
24
25 Q. I am sorry about this -- I am turning you into a librarian
26 -- but I would like you to have a look at another
27 document. This is a pink file and it has Roman X on it.
28 It is called, "Operations and Training Manual". What you
29 have in this file is the American parents' version of this
30 document for 1990, 1991. Is there a similar thing in this
31 country or has there been?
32 A. As far as I am aware, we work off this type of
33 document, yes, the operations manual.
34
35 Q. Anyway, that is, perhaps, a matter we can deal with in the
36 future, but I would like you, Mr. Hawkes, to turn towards
37 the end of this document. There is a page number stamped
38 at the bottom of the page, page 149. There are two columns
39 on the page; the left-hand column is headed "Kids'
40 Atmosphere". Do you see that?
41 A. Yes, I do.
42
43 Q. It reads: "Children are often the key decision makers
44 concerning where a family goes to eat. Although the
45 parents decide" in italics "when to go out, the children
46 many times 'decide'" in italics "where to go. What do they
47 look for in their decision? Food, folks, and fun. And
48 they look for the personal extra touches and surprises that
49 make dining out a fun event."
50
51 I am going to ask you to look at the next part of this in a
52 moment, but I want to ask you a couple of questions, or one
53 question really, about what we have just read. First of
54 all, this is the American document. Does the attitude of
55 the English, or the perception of the English company, to
56 the influence which a child or children have in deciding
57 where to go rather than when, does it differ in any
58 significant way from what the Americans have written here?
59 A. No, it does not.
60
