Wendy’s Is Finally Selling This ‘Hotly Overrated’ Flawless Flavor

This momentum continued in the United States, when the strawberry flavor was tested in a few cities. “The result was that the product ran out in the middle of the show because people liked it so much,” Laredo said. “It’s very predictable — dare I say as predictable as the launch of Hot nuggets.”

It’s a notable shift at Wendy’s, which doesn’t confuse Frosty’s flavors as much McDonald’s (MCD) He does with McFlurry’s lineup. the strawberry Only a second new flavor added in the US in the past 16 years: Wendy’s launched a Frosty birthday cake in 2019 when the chain celebrated its 50th birthday. Vanilla Frosty was added to the lists in 2006.

Strawberry Frosties isn’t the only item for a limited time at Wendy’s starting Monday. Also returning for the third summer in a row is the Summer Strawberry Chicken Salad, a mix of fresh strawberry slices, bacon, and grilled chicken served on top of a bed of crunchy lettuce and springtime mix.

Like other chains, Wendy’s has been hit hard by rising commodity and labor costs, with its margins declining as a result. In the first quarter, global sales at Wendy’s restaurants open for at least 15 months grew 2.4% — lagging behind its competitors. By comparison, McDonald’s sales at global restaurants open at least 13 months ago jumped 11.8%, while Burger King’s sales at open locations grew at least 10.3% annually.

During a call with an analyst recently, Wendy executives said first-quarter results didn’t quite meet expectations. “The first quarter, from a margin standpoint, didn’t quite line up with plan,” Wendy’s Chief Financial Officer Gunther Plosch said during a call with an analyst in May. “We lost sales slightly,” he said, adding that “goods and employment inflation were a little higher than we had expected.”

Wendy’s shares are down more than 20% so far this year.

– Danielle Weiner Brunner of CNN Business contributed to this report.