New York
CNN
—

McDonald’s hopes to win back customers who have been put off by higher prices with a new value menu.

On Friday, the fast-food chain unveiled the ‘McValue’ menu, a new budget-friendly category that will roll out to US restaurants on January 7, 2025. The popular $5 meal deal, unveiled earlier this year, will take center stage. . The menu also includes a new “Buy One, Add One for $1” option, which includes breakfast.

McDonald’s is trying to revive growth after a number of dismal quarters. The chain’s value perception has declined among money-conscious customers as the average price of its menu items has risen about 40% over the past five years, in line with rising costs, the company said.

“When it comes to value, we know there is no one-size-fits-all. We have worked closely with our franchisees to create a new platform that allows our customers to define value on their own terms,” said Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald’s USA, in a statement.

The chain was already making some progress before an E. coli outbreak in October sent sales and footfall into a nosedive. McDonald’s announced last week that it is investing $100 million in marketing and assistance to franchises hardest hit by the health crisis.

The McValue menu also features more in-app offers, plus local food and drink deals hosted by the franchisees.

The national rollout of McValue helps “reinforce McDonald’s broader image as a value-oriented brand,” said David Henkes, senior director at Technomic, a food industry research and consulting firm.

“Restaurant traffic remains a challenge, and this really represents a mindset that value will continue to be important to consumers for the foreseeable future,” he told CNN. “Inflation remains high, and creating a more structured, long-term value platform tells me McDonald’s sees real opportunity in doubling down on its focus on budget-minded consumers.”

The new menu category is McDonald’s biggest value-oriented effort since 2018, when some items were priced from $1 to $3.

But the dollar menu proved relatively unpopular compared to the much more successful $5 value meal, which hit the market this summer. Customers were not necessarily looking for cheap food, but more value for their money.

Ultimately, inflation all but wiped out the items at the lower end of that price level. The McValue menu will replace what’s left of it.