BOSTON MARKET SERVING UP 'FEAST' FOR FAMILY

ROSEANNE HARPER

GOLDEN, Colo. -- In an effort to whip up more sales of its bundled, family-size meals, Boston Market has begun offering a "Boston Market Feast" at a special price, with a dessert thrown in.

While restaurants operating under the Boston Market concept, created by Boston Chicken here, are often thought of as providers of "family meals," the fact is that 80% of sales are made up of "individual meals," said Kelly Jorgenson, company spokeswoman.

"Promoting the Feast is an attempt to create awareness of the family-sized meal. We want to increase sales of them," she said.

After testing the Feast concept -- which is similar to the "value meals with dessert" that KFC has offered in the past -- Boston Chicken has rolled out the Feast promotion to 80% of its market areas.

The Feast, touted on freestanding inserts in newspapers across the United States and on signs in-store, includes "Your choice of one chicken or one meatloaf or four servings of ham or four servings of turkey; three large side items, four corn bread, and one cinnamon apple pie, for $15.99. Additional $2 for ham and turkey. Limited time only," according to the chain's marketing materials.

"This is basically a summer promotion," Jorgenson added. Some menu tweakings may be made over the summer such as the addition of another dessert, she said. Next up for dessert will be Chocolate Mania, which, like the apple pie, was developed by Boston Chicken and is made to its specifications by an outside company.

Chocolate Mania contains chocolate fudge brownies, chocolate mousse, real whipped cream and chocolate shavings. It is packed in a round container, "but serves more like a mousse than like a cake," Jorgenson said.

The current freestanding insert that promotes the Feast shows a color photo of a table laden with all the choices offered. The apple pie and a roasted chicken are in the foreground. The flipside of the insert is devoted to a huge picture of the apple pie.

Customer response to the Feast in test markets was excellent, Jorgenson said. And, of customers polled by Boston Market after they had tried the Feast, a full 98% said they would purchase one again, Jorgenson said.

The wave of "Feast" ads is part of a just-launched $20 million ad campaign.