Hardee's chases BK with new Stix - Hardee's Food Systems Inc

Hardee's Chases BK with new Stix By Peter J. Romeo

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. -- Lunging for a chunk of the hamburger giants' chicken sales, Hardee's, the 3,000-unit regional fast feeder, is rolling out a new finger food markedly similar to Burger King's two-year-old Chicken Tenders product.

Like Chicken Tenders, Hardee's new Chicken Stix consist of batter-dipped chicken breast strips deep-fried in vegetable oil.

The strips are sold in packs of six or nine with a choice of four dipping sauces (Sweet-and-Sour, Honey, Barbecue, and Sweet Mustard). The six-pack sells for $1.89; the nine-pack, for $2.59.

An introductory advertising campaign favorably compares Stix with McDonald's hot-selling Chicken McNuggets, which are mechanically formed from pieces of processed poultry.

The commercials point out that Stix are actual strips of chicken breast rather than molded chicken flakes.

Although Burger King can similarly crow about its Chickens Tenders, the troubled Pillsbury subsidiary has pinned its hopes on a long-awaited turnaround on a new advertising campaign trumpeting the chain's signature flame-broiled hamburgers.

"Although we're not the first chain among the burger giants to roll out this type of product, we're definitely going to be No. 1 in attributes such as nutritional appeal, price-value, and product quality," asserted William Prather, Hardee's president and a former high-ranking Burger King executive.

Prather projected that Stix would appeal in particular to women aged 18 to 35 and children less than 12 years old.

"We see a $1 billion chicken market out there," a Hardee's spokesman said.

Chicken Stix accounted for as much as 10 percent of test units' sales, according to the chain.

Hardee's seems to relish the prospect of stealing business away from 4,800-unit Burger King, which has been unable to pull out of a two-year sales decline.

"Will Hardee's ever be No. 1, beating out McDonald's?" Hardee's chairman Jack Laughery rhetorically asked during a speech at a recent trade show. "I frankly doubt it. But we certainly aspire to be No. 2, ahead of Burger King."

Hardee's said it was ready to roll out Chicken Stix in 1985, when Burger King's research-and-development department was still refining Chicken Tenders.

"We put the rollout on hold to concentrate on developing our burger patty," the Hardee's spokesman said. The nation's No. 4 burger chain reformulated its signature product in 1986.

Since then, it has introduced new biscuit breakfast sandwiches, prepackaged salads, and a line of soft-serve ice cream.

Photo: Hardee's new Chicken Stix.

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