Day 064 - 08 Dec 94 - Page 15

     
     1        are scientifically saying carrageenin is good for you
     2        because it is a seaweed derivative.
     3
     4   Q.   Right, so today you would offer the McLean Delux, would
     5        you?
     6        A.  No, because the experience in the US is that it does
     7        not sell very well -- hardly at all in fact.  People demand
     8        such products but do not actually buy them.
     9
    10   Q.   Are they advertised as heavily as the other products?
    11        A.  Of course.
    12
    13   Q.   They are?
    14        A.  McLean Delux was advertised tremendously.  I happen to
    15        have been in Florida on holiday at the time that McLean
    16        Delux was rolled out in that part of the country, and it
    17        was headlines in the local newspaper.  The guy who checked
    18        me in at the hotel actually said how excited they were that
    19        the McLean Delux burger was coming to Florida.
    20
    Q.   How long did this heavy advertising continue for?
    22        A.  I cannot speak for the US advertising, I do not know,
    23        except to say it was heavy weight at the time.
    24
    25   Q.   Was it right that there was a fair few people who did try
    26        it out at the time?
    27        A.  Oh, absolutely, yes.
    28
    29   Q.   But sales dropped off after that?
    30        A.  Sales are very poor now of that product, but that is
    31        not unusual.  Quite often you will get people try a product
    32        because they are new and then realise that, although they
    33        may have demanded it, it is not really what they want
    34        anyway because it does not taste so good.
    35
    36   Q.   In the paragraph above that it says:  "Could McDonald's
    37        oven-bake its apple and cherry pies instead of deep-frying
    38        them?  Not really, because the deep friers are set up,
    39        There are no ovens installed, and a baked pie probably
    40        would not fit the dispenser".  Was that the reason you gave
         to the journalist?
    42        A.  Yes, it was.
    43
    44   Q.   Is that still the situation now?
    45        A.  It is the situation now.
    46
    47   Q.   Is that really a big problem, for McDonald's to set up
    48        ovens instead of deep fries?
    49        A.  It is a huge cost.
    50 
    51   Q.   It is a huge cost when you set up a new store as well, 
    52        but  ----- 
    53        A.  Well, absolutely, but we are talking about the sales of
    54        one product here.  If the sales of that one product could
    55        be justified against a higher cost, then we would do it.
    56        The fact is it cannot be justified.  The baked apple pie
    57        does not sell any more than the fried apple pie.
    58
    59   Q.   It does not sell at all, does it, because you have not got
    60        it?