(Photo : Wendys via PR Newswire) Wendy's Pretzel Baconator.
Wendy's lovers, hold on to your little frosty shakes and settle down a tad. Earlier this month, the CEO of the square-patty-slangin' fast-food giant said that it intends to roll out dynamic pricing in the near future, meaning that prices could change based on how busy they are - which seems to have toasted your buns a little too much for your liking. I feel you on that. In the spirit of the great Chandler Bing, could food BE any more expensive right now?
Wendy's Clarifies Use of Dynamic Pricing
You might already be familiar with the concept of "dynamic pricing" - which is often used interchangeably with "surge pricing" - when attempting to hail an Uber and discovering that prices are three times as much as they usually are based on demand for drivers' services.
The comment flew under the radar for a couple of weeks until earlier this week, when media outlets began to investigate further and set the internet ablaze with the news. Even Senator Elizabeth Warren chimed in to express her disdain, writing on X," @Wendys is planning to try out "surge pricing" - that means you could pay more for your lunch, even if the cost to Wendy's stays exactly the same. It's price gouging, plain and simple, and American families have had enough."
The company quickly clarified that it intends to use dynamic pricing - not surge pricing - to provide discounts when business is slower. It has no plans to increase prices during the busiest times at its restaurants. The clarification focused on implementing fancy new digital menu boards at each of its locations by the end of 2025, which will use AI to offer flexibility in changing the display of featured items.
Is Surge Pricing Still On The Table?
A little discount here or there would certainly be a welcome relief to the overpriced, too-small items that most fast food joints are serving these days. But will Wendy's dynamic pricing eventually move to surge pricing to pad profit margins? Seems like a slippery slope to me.
