Fast-food deals go into overdrive as economy sputters
Monday, September 26th, 2011 at
11:23 pm
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Cheap eats are making a rapid-fire return to fast food.
As the economy continues to tank and unemployment in the core 18- to 24-year-old target hovers near 20%, some of the biggest names in fast food — from Pizza Hut to Subway to Taco Bell— are back with eye-popping deals.
It’s not because the fast-food behemoths want to go so low. It’s because they have to. After some improvement late last year and earlier this year, the $236 billion fast-food industry — with the notable exception of McDonald’s — is mostly heading south, again.
The statistics are alarming. The number of annual restaurant visits by a typical Millennial has plummeted from 245 visits five years ago to 192 this year, NPD Group reports.
