David, thanks for the info. Unfortunately I wasn't able to hear the conference call and it's obvious that there is some real meat in the discussion. I'm particularly glad to hear that FM also sees cracks in the burger wars. FM's estimate of 20% growth in earnings is designed to leave room for positive surprises. I'll stick with $1.18 but I'm ready to be happily surprised when/if FM raises the price on JJ. If the 99 cent price point is going to be abandoned, it seems to me that the increase ought to be at least 20 cents, or $1.19. That's still a bargain and will continue to put pressure on the competition if they try to keep their signature burgers at their old "regular" prices. 40 cents per share increase in earnings sounds nice to me. Ka-ching! Couple that with a satisfactory conclusion with Vons, and FM could see its way to 30. Or more.
FM has been testing a computer-like screen drive up ordering system for several years now. It's neato. Here's how it works: You tell the clerk what you want, and then it appears, one line per item, on the screen below the billboard menu, next to the speaker. Prices, taxes, and total are there for you to review. No more problem with bad speakers, accents, etc. Sounds to me like a win-win. No more miscommunication and faster moves through the drive thru. Now if they could just introduce a push button system, where the customer pushed a button showing the picture of what you're ordering, there'd be even more improvement, not to mention the reduced labor cost.
Arnie |
