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Burger King's North America Q1 (Quarter 1) sales rose 6.9 percent, its biggest increase in nearly a decade. The surge was greatly due to the Spicy BLT Whopper and "2 for $5" promotion.
Restaurant Brands International, Burger King's parent company, reported the figures on Monday. It did not state if the increase in sales was due to higher customer traffic or average customer spending.
Daniel Schwartz, CEO of Restaurant Brands, says that many factors have caused Burger King's increase in sales. There is no single "silver bullet."
The Spicy BLT Whopper sells for $4.99, which is $1 higher than the standard Whopper. The key to the menu item is its being new yet requiring few new extra ingredients.
Other factors helped to increase sales. They included the A1 Ultimate Bacon Cheeseburger; and strong breakfast sales, which comprise up to 14 percent of sales.
Burg King has also been encouraging franchises to remodel their restaurants. About 40 percent of all locations are now remodeled.
Meanwhile, sales at McDonald's United States restaurants dropped 2.6 percent during Q1. During that period Taco Bell's sales rose 6 percent, due to its new breakfast menu.
Burger King's number of U.S. locations has stayed mostly flat at 7,000 stores, according to Miami Herald. However, it has been inking deals to increase its international restaurants, whose sales rose 4.6 percent in Q1.
Meanwhile, McDonald's has over 14,300 locations in the U.S., and over 36,200 locations worldwide. It plans to slow down its international expansion and focus on repairing its business.
Canada-based Restaurant Brands International Inc. was formed in December by a merger of Burger King and Tim Hortons Inc., a donut chain. After adjusting for particular costs, Restaurant Brands earned a higher-than-expected 18 cents per share, according to Bloomberg.
The company's revenue ticked up to $932 million. This was below the projections of analysts at FactSet.
Ironically, a strong U.S. dollar had a negative impact on Restaurant Brands' Q1 sales. The company says that its growth would have been 9.6 percent otherwise.
Burger King was founded in 1953, and introduced its signature Whopper burger in 1957.
