In September 2025, McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski sounded the alarm about new customer behavior. Kempczinski highlighted a “two-tier economy” that's fundamentally changing how people eat. The CEO observed a stark divide in the brand’s customer base, with traffic from low-income consumers dropping by double digits, and traffic from higher-income consumers (those earning more than $100,000) “doing quite well.” The CEO identified the key consumer behavioral shift as skipping breakfast. “And it’s because ...