McDonald’s to offer BTS Meal in local restos in June

POPULAR food chain McDonald’s has partnered with Korean supergroup BTS for a specially designed meal to be offered in participating restaurants nationwide in June.

In an announcement made on Monday night, McDonald’s said its “BTS Meal” will arrive in the Philippines starting June 18, part of a one-of-a-kind menu “tour” for the offering that will have the band’s signature order served in some 50 different countries in the world.

The BTS Meal includes a 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, medium fries, medium Coca-Cola, and sweet chili and Cajun dipping sauces inspired by popular recipes from McDonald’s South Korea.

The burger chain has seen its revenue outside the United States drop during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company is tapping on promotional campaigns through celebrity endorsements and limited-time menu items to get customers back into restaurants as economies reopen with the roll-out of vaccines.

The BTS meal follows similar US-only deals with singers J Balvin and Travis Scott, which McDonald’s says boosted sales in the later half of last year.

The spike in demand during the Travis Scott promotion caused the company to temporarily run short of ingredients to assemble its signature Quarter Pounder burgers at some restaurants.

The BTS Meal, McDonald’s Philippines said, should be a hit in the local market as the band has a large following among Filipinos.

“This band is truly a global phenomenon with a fan base that knows no borders, and we couldn’t be more excited to bring the BTS Meal to our customers in the Philippines starting June,” said Oliver Rabatan, McDonald’s Philippines Marketing & Channels Head, in a release.

For the management of BTS, the partnership is a welcome development since the group finds much affinity with the food chain.

“The band has great memories with McDonald’s. We’re excited about this collaboration and can’t wait to share the BTS Meal with the world,” said BIGHIT MUSIC, label of BTS.

BTS has had a steady presence in the global music scene in the last decade, churning out chart-topping hits like “DNA” (2017), “Boy with Luv” (2019) and “Dynamite” (2020).

For more information on the BTS Meal and other updates, follow McDonald’s social channels McDo.ph on Facebook and McDo_PH on Twitter and Instagram. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo with a Reuters report