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I have to pass along a post by Elaine Misonzhnik over at TrafficCourt about Burger King's plan to open so-called Whopper Bars at certain tourist-friendly locales.  The Whopper Bars will sell beer!  (Along w/ special BK fare with premium toppings.)  It looks like the first beer-selling Whopper Bar is about to roll out in Miami Beach.  I guess BK decided that the coffee market was too rough-n-tumble for it.

Frankly, I am of two minds about this development.  On the one hand, as a guy who prefers BK and likes a beer w/ his cheeseburger every once in a while, the Whopper Bar is good news.  On the other hand, I share Elaine's concerns that the alcohol could serve to drive away more consumers than it attracts, especially at night, and where is the value in that? 

The Whopper Bar is a gutsy call, no question, but an understandable one.  The burger market is saturated, consumer spending is still down, yet BK still needs to find a way to increase market share.  When people do splurge, it is rarely at the same levels these days.  Sometimes, a tasty "gourmet" burger with a beer at a reasonable price will do the trick.  The Whopper Bar should be trying to reach consumers who can't or won't spend the time or money to grab a meal at a local restaurant, including chain restaurants like Friday's or Applebee's.

To me, the key will be in the execution by BK.  Can it successfully market the planned boutique-like feel of the Whopper Bar in such a crowded field?  If yes, fast-food and beer could be a formidable combination.

Anybody else thirsty?

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Check out this article by Elaine Misonzhnik of Retail Traffic about how consumers can leverage smart phones while out shopping. Very interesting. Personally, I do a terrible job of using my smart phone but I am smart enough to know that this kind of leveraging is the wave of the future and will only increase. So sayeth Steve Jobs.

Initially, I thought the news was going to be all bad for retailers, with examples of consumers standing in store aisles but ordering merchandise on-line. However, while on-line sales are undoubtedly a clear and present danger to store sales, I soon realized that the news is not all bad for a couple of reasons: 

First, for the most part, in order to leverage the applications discussed in the article, the consumer has to already be at or near the store, which is half the battle for retailers.  (I bet most successful retailers like their chances once people come through the door.)

Second, at least so far, it looks like consumers are using the smart phone applications primarily to help with comparison shopping on "big ticket" items.

Third, and perhaps most important, savvy retailers can embrace the technology and leverage it themselves. For example, as noted in the article, a retailer who provides data for use in the ShopSavvy application by Big in Japan gets an opportunity to lure shoppers with sales and can purchase different add-on services to provide it with a competitive advantage.

I agree with the sentiment expressed by Alexander Muse of Big in Japan: smart phones and the Internet are here to stay and have changed the rules of engagement for retailers.  The sooner that retailers take advantage of the new rules, the better.

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