Wendy's International -- Folksy Ads Cook Up Profits For Nation's No. 3 Burger-Maker

Dave Thomas is the Lee Iacocca of fast food.

Iacocca, of course, is the chairman of the No. 3 U.S. automaker, Chrysler. Thomas is the chairman and founder of the nation's No. 3 burger-maker, Wendy's International Inc., based in Columbus, Ohio.

Iacocca appears in Chrysler commercials. Thomas appears in Wendy's commercials. Iacocca has become more effective as a spokesman with each commercial he makes. Ditto Dave Thomas.

But there the similarities end. In Chrysler commercials, Iacocca is meant to impress us as the inspired leader of a major corporation. In Wendy's ads, Dave Thomas comes across as an average, lumpy guy who likes his hamburgers.

In ads that debuted last month, Thomas announces Wendy's latest sandwich, the "Chicken Cordon Bleu." Though "Cordon Bleu" sounds a little upscale for a meat and potatoes guy like Thomas, he is egged on in the ad by what we assume is the off-screen voice of his more sophisticated daughter, Wendy, though it's actually the voice of an actress.

A veteran fast food cook, manager, franchisee and executive for various chains, Thomas, 59, opened his first Wendy's in Columbus in 1969. Today there are 3,800 Wendy's with 130,000 employees in 18 countries.

He first appeared in a Wendy's commercial back in 1982. All he had to say were a few sentences that began, "I'm Dave Thomas. I started Wendy's with one restaurant and a philosophy . . ." The problem was, it took him eight hours sometimes to say his lines right. He clearly wasn't comfortable making ads in those days.

So for most of the rest of the decade, Thomas didn't appear in Wendy's commercials. But the chain's advertising didn't suffer. Dwarfed by the advertising clout of McDonald's and Burger King, Wendy's wisely decided to substitute quality for quantity in its commercials.

The results are among the most memorable campaigns of the 1980s. After Clara Peller shouted, "Where's the Beef?" Walter Mondale used the slogan in his ill-fated bid for the U.S. presidency. Another memorable Wendy's spot centered on a bleak Soviet fashion show. Then we had people choosing between Hamburger "A" and Hamburger "B."

But two years ago, Thomas felt his New York-based ad agency, Backer, Spielvogel, Bates Worldwide, had lost its way. Thomas spoke passionately to the creative team about what the new Wendy's campaign ought to say. And he was a persuasive speaker. A few weeks later, he found himself saying the same things to a camera. Again, Thomas was the star of a new campaign.

The first of Thomas' 1989 ads were not his best. He told us Wendy's makes the best burgers "in the bidness." Someone from the agency let him know he was saying the word wrong, but he insisted on saying it that way.

But many customers loved it, said Denny Lynch, a Wendy's spokesman. "We were getting comments from people who said `Finally you got someone who talked like I do . . .' He was getting recognized and complimented for talking like a common man, but we also heard from parents and teachers who asked, `What kind of example are you setting for young people?' "

Eventually, Thomas learned to relax in front of the camera. Like Iacocca, he learned to get up and walk around, use his hands and change his expression. The transformation has been impressive.

In his 1989 commercials, Thomas came across as the stiff, misspeaking chairman of a burger empire. But the Thomas we see today is a cross between Barney Rubble and Rodney Dangerfield. He's an average guy who's sick of nouvelle cuisine. He says he wants a burger and a shake. And we believe him.

Nowhere is this image more effectively exploited than in a recent spot which shows Thomas suffering through the hors d'oeuvre line at a cocktail party. He examines each delicacy, dismissing each as inedible, finally declaring what he really wants is "a big Dave's Deluxe."

The Dave's Deluxe is a burger topped with grilled onions, bacon, and what Thomas refers to as "the works." The commercial introducing the sandwich was a classic. It featured Thomas, in his bathrobe, unlocking a Wendy's in the middle of the night to make a Dave's Deluxe to satisfy his cravings.

That commercial would lead us to believe the Dave's Deluxe was Thomas' invention, though it was cooked up, so to speak, by Wendy's research-and-development department, according to Lynch.

No matter. By using Thomas as its spokesman, Wendy's has done something none of its chief rivals could possibly do - it has identified its nice-guy-down-the-street founder with its all-American product line.

The results have been good news for Wendy's bottom line, according to Charles Rath, Wendy's International Inc. executive vice president for marketing, who said 1990 was the most profitable year for the company since 1986. The company's research also shows almost 80 percent of people polled can recall a recent Wendy's commercial in which Thomas has starred.

For Thomas, these commercials have been gratifying.

"People recognize me on the street," he said. "They say things like, `You really look better on TV than you do in person.' Or they say the opposite. In Iowa, a woman told me, `There are three heros in my life: George Patton, Bobby Knight and you."'

Advertising is a regular feature in the Business Monday section of The Seattle Times.