Life goes on even after McDonald’s BTS Meal ended its brief run in Indonesia, but fans of the K-pop superstars in the country are keeping busy in the aftermath of the frenzy, as they have just presented a very generous collective tip to the drivers who delivered the limited edition set to their doorsteps.
Two communities of ARMY — in case you’re out of the K-loop, that’s what the BTS fans are called — have recently handed tips amounting to IDR159 million (US$11,012) to more than 35,000 motorcycle taxi/delivery drivers (locally known as ojol) from food delivery service Gofood. The fund was raised by BTS Army Indonesia and ARMY Indonesia Festa through their respective pages on donation platform Kitabisa.
Also Read — We Purple Ojol: BTS fans in Indonesia raise funds to pay for COVID-19 tests, lunch boxes for delivery drivers
Adzhani Adhari, one of the organizers from BTS Army Indonesia, said the initiative was part of the fan group’s celebration of the septet’s eighth anniversary, which fell on June 13. The fans wanted to share their joy and excitement with the ojol drivers, who queued long hours and delivered the BTS Meal for them. They managed to raise around IDR262 million (US$18,145) out of the targeted IDR107 million (US$7,410), and the fund also went to other initiatives such as distributing staple foods and conducting antigen rapid tests for hundreds of drivers.
Meanwhile, Gojek said it will double the amount of the collected tip before distributing the fund to their drivers. In case you’re wondering how the startup giant is able to figure out which drivers delivered the BTS Meal, here’s the answer:
“We will check in our system. Because Gojek is app-based, as long as the process is running smoothly, we believe that everyone will [be tipped] and [the fund] will be evenly distributed, everyone gets the same amount, not more or less,” Gojek spokesperson Gede Manggala said.
While IDR159 million sounds like a lot for a tip, if we do the math, that comes down to IDR9,000 (US$0.62) per driver after Gojek’s doubling of the collected amount. That, essentially, amounts to a standard tip for a delivery, which is really appreciated by the drivers more so than ever during these tough times.
In Indonesia, the highly anticipated BTS Meal quietly ended its course only a few days after it was launched on June 9: much shorter than the promised 1-month run by McDonald’s Indonesia. You might call that one major mishap, but the fast food giant has yet to explain whether they were sold out or decided to discontinue the promo. At the time of publication, no statement has been released about the short-lived campaign.
After the BTS Meal triggered a buying frenzy across Indonesia, the Jakarta Metro Police urged McDonald’s to discontinue the promotion, following the shutting down of several stores for attracting droves of drivers ordering the set for customers.
The BTS Meal consisted of nine pieces of Chicken McNuggets, Sweet Chili and Cajun sauces, medium fries, and a drink. The limited edition sauces are said to have been picked by the members of the K-pop megastars themselves, as well as inspired by McDonald’s in South Korea.
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