Burger King unveils new menu to compete with competitors

Burger King launched the largest revamp of its menu Monday since its creation in the 1950s.

The new menu is a part of a multifaceted brand overhaul that will include 10 new menu items, new celebrity advertisements and renovations to many of its restaurants.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the Miami-based chain will now offer garden salads, wraps, fruit smoothies and frappes – echoing recent menu changes made by its largest competitor, McDonald's.

The menu changes reflect a trend toward low-calorie, low-fat and more natural items at fast-food chains, as part of an effort to take avantage of the growing healthy food market.

Read more on GlobalPost: Fast food makes you depressed, according to Spanish study

“Consumers wanted more choices,” said Steve Wiborg, president of Burger King’s North America operations, according to the Washington Post. “Not just healthy choices, but choices they could get at the competition.”

As a part of the plan to revamp the chain, Burger King also said that it would modernize thousands its aging outlets, redesign uniforms and serve burgers in cardboard boxes instead of paper wrapping.

Another image bolstering tactic was to hire a number of celebrities, including David Beckham, Mary J. Blige, Salma Hayek, Jay Leno, Steven Tyler and Sofia Vergara, to feature in a new advertising campaign.

Burger King has been trailing behind its competitors in recent years with lackluster sales figures.

Burger King fell to third place in US sales among major hamburger chains, behind its rival Wendy's, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Read more on GlobalPost: Wendy's edges out Burger King for number two sales spot

Critics say that the strategy of copying its rivals might not work.

"You can have football teams, and just because they're both running the same offense it doesn't mean it will work the same," said Eddie Yoon, a principal at The Cambridge Group, a consulting firm, according to the Associated Press.