Perceived Cost Performance and Consumer Decision-Making: A Study of Competitive Mechanisms Between Transnational and Local Brands in China's Fast-Food Market, with Reference to McDonald's, Wallace, and Tastien

This paper examines how perceived cost performance shapes consumer decision-making and competitive dynamics in China's fast-food market. Focusing on McDonald's, Wallace, and Tastien, the study analyzes how transnational and local brands compete through combinations of price, product localization, brand trust, store experience, and symbolic positioning. Rather than reducing competition to simple price rivalry, this paper argues that perceived cost performance is a multidimensional judgment. Consumers weigh monetary cost against portion size, taste familiarity, service reliability, convenience, and social meaning. In the contemporary Chinese market, transnational brands like McDonald's rely on standardized quality control, recognizable branding, and stable service expectations. Conversely, local brands such as Wallace and Tastien derive competitive advantage from lower prices, stronger localization, and flexible adaptation to domestic consumption preferences. The analysis demonstrates that consumer choice is structured by the interaction among income sensitivity, occasion-based consumption, trust in food safety, cultural proximity, and online ordering platforms. Consequently, competition between transnational and local brands is best understood as a contest over value interpretation rather than a direct comparison of menu prices. Adopting a theoretical and comparative case-based approach, this study concludes that local brands gain strength by aligning moderate prices with culturally resonant products, whereas transnational brands remain competitive by converting brand assurance into a justified premium. Ultimately, perceived cost performance serves as a central mechanism organizing market segmentation and brand competition.