Fast Food Options

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normalthings
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by normalthings »

dukuboy1 wrote: Wed Mar 04, 2020 11:16 pm Interesting discussion. I was curious why some of the bigger fast food chains weren’t around. I’m personally happy with food options & we are not lacking for options. Found it curious why other chains weren’t around trying to capitalize on business
I was wondering if the extremely fixed high upstart and franchising costs make a small urban location unprofitable without a drive through.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by brewcrew1000 »

And the fast food that works in downtown Chicago or NYC are also in high traffic areas full of tourists like Michigan Ave, times square or inside train major train terminals/stations. We have nothing like that in KC.

It also helps that McDonald's is HQ in Chicago so there is one like every 3 blocks in downtown Chicago. It's very likely that most of these downtown locations are corporate ran so they can take massive loses, experiment with different menus, different ordering systems, absorb high rents and just write it off as a loss on taxes
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by earthling »

normalthings wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 12:59 am
dukuboy1 wrote: Wed Mar 04, 2020 11:16 pm Interesting discussion. I was curious why some of the bigger fast food chains weren’t around. I’m personally happy with food options & we are not lacking for options. Found it curious why other chains weren’t around trying to capitalize on business
I was wondering if the extremely fixed high upstart and franchising costs make a small urban location unprofitable without a drive through.

Apparently because local franchisers want drivethrus.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by earthling »

Taco Bell is expanding urban 'cantinas'. Would work well downtown if a franchisers will bite...

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DColeKC
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by DColeKC »

earthling wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 8:14 am
normalthings wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 12:59 am
dukuboy1 wrote: Wed Mar 04, 2020 11:16 pm Interesting discussion. I was curious why some of the bigger fast food chains weren’t around. I’m personally happy with food options & we are not lacking for options. Found it curious why other chains weren’t around trying to capitalize on business
I was wondering if the extremely fixed high upstart and franchising costs make a small urban location unprofitable without a drive through.

Apparently because local franchisers want drivethrus.
It’s not up to the local franchisers. McDonald’s corporate will not sign off on a location in KC without a drive thru.

This was discovered because a local franchise owner discussed with Cordish and was ultimately shut down by corporate.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by KCPowercat »

Interesting. Wonder what it takes for them to allow it? More foot traffic counts? More residents?
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by flyingember »

DColeKC wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 8:58 am It’s not up to the local franchisers. McDonald’s corporate will not sign off on a location in KC without a drive thru.

This was discovered because a local franchise owner discussed with Cordish and was ultimately shut down by corporate.
I wonder when that changed? The Plaza had one without.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by mgsports »

Theirs a lot of Burger Joints in Chicago area not here.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by mister816 »

just about every downtown i've been to has one, what makes us different?
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by beautyfromashes »

KCPowercat wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 9:03 am Interesting. Wonder what it takes for them to allow it? More foot traffic counts? More residents?
I would guess that the a large number of Door Dash deliveries at locations DT would help change their mind.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by DColeKC »

mister816 wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 10:08 am just about every downtown i've been to has one, what makes us different?
Perhaps once we start locking in some of these bigger conventions more often, the perception will change. A McDonalds in the BK space would be a gold mine. We all know that, but it seems MCD's doesn't.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by dukuboy1 »

interesting details shared here, especially the MCD's corporate mandates.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by Steve52 »

With the current Jackson County assessment debacle affecting both residential and commercial in a negative way lot's of people and firms are having second thoughts about moving here.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by WSPanic »

dukuboy1 wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:02 pm interesting details shared here, especially the MCD's corporate mandates.
I question the validity of the "No drive thru means no McD's". I have no doubt that McD's was not into whatever offer the franchisee was trying to do at P&L, but we're taking their word for it on this one? It's clearly not a corporate mandate, so I think there's a bit more to it than what has been presented here.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by earthling »

^was thinking similar
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by shinatoo »

Steve52 wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:11 pm With the current Jackson County assessment debacle affecting both residential and commercial in a negative way lot's of people and firms are having second thoughts about moving here.
I haven't surveyed the whole city but I watch the south plaza and Brookside areas closely. Homes are moving very quickly and at a much higher prices than they were a year ago. Also, commercial vacancy rates continue to drop across all of Jackson county. So i guess those with second thoughts weren't very serious to begin with.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by DColeKC »

WSPanic wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:25 pm
dukuboy1 wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:02 pm interesting details shared here, especially the MCD's corporate mandates.
I question the validity of the "No drive thru means no McD's". I have no doubt that McD's was not into whatever offer the franchisee was trying to do at P&L, but we're taking their word for it on this one? It's clearly not a corporate mandate, so I think there's a bit more to it than what has been presented here.
It never got very far but the local franchise owner knew the store would do big business down here and was told it wouldn’t happen. IIRC, he mentioned MCd’s real estate department specifically.

All their locations without drive thrus are either in very large metros with a ton of foot traffic or have been there for decades. Like the one in downtown New Orleans. I don’t think it’s a flat out corporate mandate, but it surely applies to our market. For now.

And the original discussion was in regards to a MCD in the BK space. Which is just silly prime for success.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by WoodDraw »

DColeKC wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 10:09 pm
WSPanic wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:25 pm
dukuboy1 wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:02 pm interesting details shared here, especially the MCD's corporate mandates.
I question the validity of the "No drive thru means no McD's". I have no doubt that McD's was not into whatever offer the franchisee was trying to do at P&L, but we're taking their word for it on this one? It's clearly not a corporate mandate, so I think there's a bit more to it than what has been presented here.
It never got very far but the local franchise owner knew the store would do big business down here and was told it wouldn’t happen. IIRC, he mentioned MCd’s real estate department specifically.

All their locations without drive thrus are either in very large metros with a ton of foot traffic or have been there for decades. Like the one in downtown New Orleans. I don’t think it’s a flat out corporate mandate, but it surely applies to our market. For now.

And the original discussion was in regards to a MCD in the BK space. Which is just silly prime for success.
I've heard this story so many times it seems apocryphal at this point, but I don't question your telling.

I've heard it reversed though and that locals wouldn't invest without drive thru because they weren't familiar with how to run the stores and they couldn't agree.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by WSPanic »

McDonalds has a new space-conscious "take-out-only" concept. Would be interested if that may be something that could work here. Seems like less overhead and some good opportunity for success. But I don't much about this kind of thing.
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Re: Fast Food Options

Post by KCPowercat »

Are the take out only stores still equipped with drive thrus? I assume so.
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