Russia, which has been starved of Big Macs ever since McDonald’s closed its Russian restaurants in March this year, has announced the burger chain’s successor- the “Big Hit” from next year.
Russian fast food chain Vkusno & tochka, or “Tasty & that’s it”, said the Big Hit will be available from February next year and a similar product to the McDonald’s Happy Meal will be making a comeback as “Kids’ Combo”, a report in Reuters said.
The launch comes as the McDonald sold its Russian restaurants to businessman Alexander Govor after announcing a complete exit from the country after Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February.
The company said continuing to work in Russia was “no longer tenable, nor is it consistent with McDonald’s values”.
With the entry of Big Hit, Vkusno & tochka CEO Oleg Paroev said the company overcame supply chain issues and was growing its share in a market dominated earlier by foreign chains.
However, there are restrictions on the colours and products that the Russian can use. The Big Hit can’t use Big Macs or use the McDonald’s-style sauce.
“(The Big Hit) has its own sauce and a slightly different composition, a different layout of ingredients, but in terms of quality and taste it is very good,” Oleg Paroev said.
“We hope Russian consumers will appreciate the Big Hit and that it will become as much of a symbol of Vkusno & tochka as the Big Mac is a symbol of McDonald’s,” he added.
McDonald’s had withdrawn from Russia in May during the country’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, shutting shop at 850 locations.
In no time, the stores were re-branded with a new name – Vkusno i Tochka, and a slogan that said: “The name changes, love stays”.
The logo replaced McDonald’s iconic golden arches with one consisting of two fries and a hamburger patty against a green background. The name ‘Vkusno i Tochka’ translates to “Tasty, that’s it”.
After McDonald’s exit, Vkusno & Tochka opened their first stores in Moscow’s Pushkin square, selling around 120,000 burgers on the first day, breaking records set by McDonald’s.
The rebranded firm aims to open about a 1,000 locations across Russia in 4-5 years, expanding from the 850 under McDonald’s, according to a report in The Indian Express.
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