McDonald's adds K-pop spice to menu with new BTS meal

McDonald's Corp has tapped Korean pop sensation BTS to promote a new meal, in a move that the world's largest fast-food chain hopes will expand the reach of its US-based celebrity promotional campaigns to a global scale.

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The Grammy-nominated boy band's meal will launch starting next month in nearly 50 countries, including South Korea, McDonald's said in a statement on Monday, and will include chicken McNuggets, fries, and two dips.

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.