Virtual Brands off the Menu at Red Robin "Red Robin Gourmet Burgers is getting out of the virtual brand business. The 500-unit chain will no longer use delivery-only add-ons like MrBeast Burger in its restaurants as it focuses more on its own concept. “We’re gonna be focused on the Red Robin brand,” CEO GJ Hart said in an interview this week. “We are exiting all the virtual brands.” That includes MrBeast Burger as well as three brands Red Robin created: Chicken Sammy’s, The Wing Dept. and Fresh Set. But the move will primarily affect MrBeast Burger, the large, delivery-only burger brand tied to famous YouTuber MrBeast. Many of Red Robin’s restaurants used the brand as a supplementary revenue stream, making it a key partner for the roughly 2,000-unit MrBeast Burger. It’s the latest setback for MrBeast Burger, which is also facing a crisis of confidence from MrBeast himself. In now-deleted tweets last month, MrBeast criticized the brand for a lack of quality control and?said he was “moving on” from it." #franchisechat #restaurants #onlinebranding #franchise
The full article by Joe Guszkowski can be read here: https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/technology/red-robin-stop-using-mrbeast-burger-other-virtual-brands
Michael (Mike) Webster PhD, what do you make of this: "However, the burger chain is?maintaining its co-branding collaboration with Donatos Pizza, selling pies for both on and off-premise consumption""
Joe, did it very make sense for Red Robin to sell a rival hamburger? "Despite that issue, MrBeast Burger has continued to perform well for Red Robin, Hart said. But it has taken away some focus from the core brand. “MrBeast has not fallen off,” he said. “It’s all about Red Robin and being the best it could be and bringing it to relevancy.”