McDonald’s introduces new meal deal with nostalgic, collectible cups

McDonalds is launching its happiest meal yet.

The fast food giant announced Wednesday that it is introducing six collectible cups tied to a Collectors Meal its latest attempt to lure inflation-battered families as sales slump.

The cups feature a range of brands and characters tied to childhood memories — from Barbie, Hot Wheels and Beanie Babies to Hello Kitty, Peanuts, Shrek and McDonalds own Grimace.

The Collectors Meal will be available all day long starting Aug. 13 for an unspecified limited time. It comes with a collectible cup and an adult meal.

During breakfast hours, the meal includes a Sausage McMuffin, an egg sandwich, a hash brown and a hot coffee.

For the rest of the day, the meal comes with the choice of a 10 piece Chicken McNugget or a Big Mac with french fries and a soft drink.

The burger chain is clearly trying to appeal to young consumers, who can scan the cup on their phones to be taken to an augmented reality experience on Snapchat. 

McDonalds will be offering in-person experiences, too. The company said it will be hosting two meet-ups for McDonalds cup collectors on Aug. 17 at Coney Island in New York and the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles. 

McDonalds is placing bets that tugging at customers’ heartstrings might open up their purse strings.

The Collectors Meal is not the first meal deal McDonald’s has launched to attract cash-strapped customers.

McDonalds introduced a $5 Meal Deal a limited-time offer that includes a McDouble or McChicken, a four-piece nugget, a small fry and a small fountain beverage on June 25.

The meal deal launched on a Tuesday, which was then McDonalds busiest Tuesday of the year raking in 8% more visits than the year-to-date Tuesday average, according to analytics company Placer.ai. 

Throughout the rest of launch week, visits averaged at least 5% more than the daily year-to-date averages, according to data.

The largest fast food chain in the world also debuted Free Fries Friday a free medium fry with $1 minimum purchase for app users. The deal lasts through the end of the year.

The Collector’s Meal comes soon after McDonald’s reported disappointing earnings last week, including its first sales drop since the early days of the pandemic.