OP infers that McDonald's intended for Wendy's to fail on their first day. Based upon my experience in foodservice (including 7 years with McDonald's), I don't believe it. They never conducted business that way, and I doubt that they do now.
Years of study have taught something counter-intuitive in the fast food industry (especially in a small town where everybody knows everybody else): the better Wendy's does, the better McDonald's does. With more choices downtown, there will be more traffic.
The best food service organizations welcome others, not as competitors to fight over a bigger piece of pie, but as "partners" to make the whole pie bigger.
It's up to us to figure out how this lesson applies to our industry. There's probably a symbiotic relationship out there for us to find as well.
Years of study have taught something counter-intuitive in the fast food industry (especially in a small town where everybody knows everybody else): the better Wendy's does, the better McDonald's does. With more choices downtown, there will be more traffic.
The best food service organizations welcome others, not as competitors to fight over a bigger piece of pie, but as "partners" to make the whole pie bigger.
It's up to us to figure out how this lesson applies to our industry. There's probably a symbiotic relationship out there for us to find as well.