McDonald's Japan apologizes over frenzy linked to Pokemon card promotion
The company held a promotion in which customers were to have gotten two Pokemon cards with every Happy Set — as Happy Meals are known in Japan — purchased between Saturday and Monday. But due to overwhelming demand — many customers were buying large quantities of the meals — many McDonald's outlets ran out of the cards and ended the promotion on the first day.
The frenzy also led to significant wastage, as some customers bought the meals solely for the cards and discarded the food that came with them. Photos of such incidents were shared across social media, causing shock and anger online.
'McDonald's does not tolerate the purchase of Happy Set for the purpose of resale, nor the wasting or disposal of food,' the company said in a statement on Monday. 'This incident clearly goes against our long-standing philosophy of providing a fun dining experience for children and families, as well as our values as a restaurant.'
'We sincerely acknowledge that our response was inadequate,' it said.
In recent years, Pokemon cards have frequently been resold at high prices on flea market apps.
In response to this, McDonald's Japan had limited the purchase of Happy Set meals to five per person during the promotion, and shared information with major marketplace app Mercari to help combat the reselling of the Pokemon cards.
However, the Pokemon cards still appeared on such platforms at inflated prices.
Going forward, McDonald's Japan said it plans to impose stricter purchase limits during future promotions to prevent similar situations. Additionally, it said it will collaborate with flea market app operators and request stronger measures to curb reselling by certain users as much as possible.
In May, McDonald's Japan also faced similar issues when it released a Happy Set featuring toys from the popular manga and anime series "Chiikawa." Some customers purchased large quantities of the set meals only to discard the food afterward, sparking outrage online.
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