Can discounts fix what ails Crumbl?

Crumbl on Friday released a new, permanent value menu, the first time the company has pushed broad-based discounts outside of temporary promotions on special occasions such as the company’s birthday.

The value offer features lower prices for Dirty Sodas and the chain’s Thin Cookie, and bundled prices when customers buy one of each. A Chocolate Chip Cookie Thin is priced at 99 cents. Customers can buy Dirty Sodas for between 99 cents and $1.99. If they buy both, they can get the bundle for as little as $1.69, if they buy the 12-ounce Dirty Soda.

For the company, the value menu appears designed to give customers value while also highlighting options that have fewer calories. Crumbl’s marketing of the value menu noted that the cookie has 170 calories, and many of its dirty sodas have none.

“We believe our value menu offers a highly competitive price that is difficult to match, while still providing an opportunity for our stores to remain profitable,” the company said in response to questions from Restaurant Business. “We are committed to creating promotions that benefit our customers, drive traffic to our stores, and support the long-term success of our franchise partners.”

Some franchisees we spoke with don’t agree. “Absolutely hate it,” one said. “Desperate move.”

The discounted thin cookies were by far the most popular item purchased, according to details of some franchisees’ sales seen by Restaurant Business. Thin cookies have always been popular for customers, but are not always on the menu. Some customers bought up to two dozen at a time on Saturday, according to one operator.

That franchisee said it “didn’t generate a lot of revenue,” and “isn’t helping with the ROI of capital infrastructure costs and cost of goods.”

Some franchisees going into the deal pushed the company to put some sort of limits on the offer, arguing that they worried it would exacerbate profit challenges that have led to a big spike in store closures this year. They wanted the deal to run either for a limited time or have some limits on the number of cookies customers could purchase using the deal.

Sales in August were down 70% compared with two years earlier and, after improvement in September they fell back again in October, according to operators. At least 65 stores have closed this year, including three late last month in Fort Worth, Texas. Local reports suggest three more locations, in Georgia and California, could close in the coming weeks.

The offer has helped drive at least some sales of Dirty Soda, enough that franchisees have been able to use their soda BIBs, or bags in a box used to dispense soda, before their expiration date.

Crumbl’s springtime introduction of the beverage has not come close to meeting the company’s expectations, with some operators selling just a couple of cups per day. An early August “Soda Week” promotion was the worst sales week in company history. And 300 of the chain’s more than 1,000 locations do not even sell soda, because they couldn’t afford to pay for the equipment, which costs up to $50,000 per location.

Some franchisees have sold so few cups of dirty soda that their syrup has expired with plenty of syrup remaining. The BIBs cost franchisees between $115.95 and $128.83 for five-gallon box.

Crumbl also appears to be pushing more of its sugar-free options. The company’s Dirty Soda introduction was marred by controversy over the sugar content of some of the chain’s sodas, notably the caloric Crazy Cousins. Many customers’ first exposure to the drink online was of criticism of the beverage, which had started before the company made a big marketing push.

The chain is planning to highlight 10 low- or no-calorie dirty soda options starting on Friday. Crumbl has at least 45 different soda options, plus build-your-own, but the company wants to promote its value deal as a way to have Crumbl without taking in an excess amount of sugar or calories.

All but one of the 10 different soda options were already on the menu, the company said. But the chain is transitioning those drinks to sugar-free syrups to reduce their overall calorie count.

“Rather than introducing an entirely new lineup, we are simply bringing greater visibility to these existing lower-calorie and lower-sugar choices,” the company said. “Crumbl is committed to giving customers more options that fit their preferences and lifestyles.”

But that change required operators to order the new sugar-free syrup last week. The company sent franchisees some links to Amazon and other sources to get the ingredients. In some cases, the syrup isn’t available until late next month or early December.