McDonald’s Japan Halts Pokémon Promotion Due to Chaos: Tons of Food Wasted

According to glavcom.ua: The joint promotion between McDonald's Japan and the popular brand Pokémon ended in scandal. Customers who purchased Happy Meal sets were supposed to receive collectible cards, but the promotion lasted only one day and caused mass buying, chaos in stores, and food wastage.

Initially planned for three days, the promotion was abruptly stopped due to unexpectedly high demand for the promotional items. As a result, social media was filled with photos of wasted food and unattended packaging.

“We confirmed that some customers were making bulk purchases with the intent of reselling, which caused crowding and disorder in and out of stores. The company acknowledged that food was being thrown away or left unattended,” McDonald's stated.

It turned out that the mass purchases were linked to resellers aiming to obtain exclusive cards for further resale online at higher prices. The company apologized for the inconvenience and promised to implement restrictions on the number of sets that can be purchased.

This scandal involving the Pokémon promotion and McDonald's is yet another example of how popular promotional campaigns can lead to unexpected consequences due to resellers and unscrupulous buyers.