Burger King to Hand Out Pokemon Posters

With Pokemon toy shortages continuing to plague its restaurants across the Southland and in other parts of the country, Burger King Corp. said that it will begin distributing Pokemon posters with Kids Meals if a restaurant is out of the toys. The chain’s $22-million promotion, one of the largest in the history of the fast-food industry, features 57 different toys that are supposed to be introduced at a rate of eight a week. But with some restaurants selling 1,000 Kids Meals a day, Burger King was forced to release all available toys last week. The posters are easier to deliver to Burger King’s 8,000 U.S. restaurants than the toys, which are still being produced in Taiwan and China, spokeswoman Kim Miller said. The supply of toys is likely to be exhausted before the 56-day promotion ends, and Burger King is exploring other alternatives to the posters, she said. Miami-based Burger King reportedly ordered more than 100 million toys for the promotion, surpassing the chain’s previous high of 70 million toys last fall for a promotion tied to “The Rugrats Movie.”