As a 21st-century immigrant to the U.S., I had never heard of Rax, a fast-food chain (with similar offerings to Arbys) that had more than 500 restaurants in the 1980s. It has eight now. Even so, I could tell that The Commercial That Killed A Fast Food Chain would be an interesting mini-documentary (only four minutes long!) and now I want to eat at the nearest surviving Rax, three hours from where I live.
The video, by vlogbrothers, is a great summary of how a single inept marketing campaign precipitated total annihilation by drawing attention to everything that had already gone wrong at Rax. In this case, the chain had become obsessed with identifying a core audience that it didn't have, but the only thing it could focus on was adults who hated being around children in restaurants. Eventually it created a mascot that embodied this emotional landscape, and within months it was bankrupt.
Nonetheless, they're looking for franchisees!
If you are interested in joining the long tradition of the Rax Roast Beef family, Rich invites you to contact From Rax to Rich's to receive further information about the opportunities involved in owning a Rax Roast Beef.
