When fast-food chains aggressively raised prices between 2020 and 2024 to offset wage and ingredient costs, average ticket sizes increased, but guest foot traffic plummeted—especially among household incomes below $45,000. Because price elasticity for fast-food items (ε) ranges from -1.3 to -1.8, demand is price-elastic: a 10% price jump yields a 13%–18% reduction in volume.

Launching promo value deals (e.g. $5 Value Meal bundles) regains lost foot traffic, but risks trade-down cannibalization: premium combos with high dollar gross margins can lose volume to entry-level bundles. The optimal balance captures traffic-building volume while maintaining beverage/side attachment rates to maximize net store dollar contribution.