Mc D's and the new idea
...change. In 1967, its first restaurants outside of the United States were opened in Canada and Puerto Rico. 1968 saw the introduction of the company’s flagship product, the Big Mac. Throughout the 1970’s, McDonald’s became involved with a lot of charity work, establishing its own charity called the Ronald McDonald House, providing temporary housing for the families of seriously ill children. Kroc had always believed in giving something back to the community in order to make the world a better place. In 1973, McDonald’s added breakfast items to its menu. The Quarter Pounder was introduced in the subsequent year, as sales reached $1 billion. 1974 saw the opening of the first restaurant in the UK, in Woolwich, South London. In 1975, McDonald’s introduced “drive-thru” window service, which allowed motorists to order and receive food from their cars. Nowadays, this type of business accounts for around half of all McDonald’s sales in the United States. In 1983, Chicken McNuggets were added to the menu, giving customers an alternative to beef. Founder Ray Kroc died in 1984. Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities was founded in his remembrance to raise funds in support of child welfare. In 1989, McDonald's became listed on the Frankfurt, Munich, Paris, and Tokyo stock exchanges. Through the 990s smaller outlets known as “Express” stores were opened in hospitals, zoos, airports, and even on ferries. These outlets served a limited menu and lacked some of the amenities of larger stores. In 1996, McDonalds signed a 10-year agreement with The Walt Disney Company. This agreement has led to the introduction of restaurants at Disney theme parks, and the promotion of Disney films through McDonald's. Packaging is the primary source of advertising, along with the addition of limited edition products added to the menu. Examples include Pocahontas and The Lion King. Franchises The McDonald’s Corporation is the largest worldwide franchised food service organisation. In the 1960’s, Ray Kroc franchised restaurants for the low sum of $950, demanding 1.9% of sales. As the success of Kroc and his organisation depended on the prosperity of the franchisees, this mutual interest was a key factor in McDonald’s success. In the USA, 87% of restaurants are owned and operated by franchisees. In the UK, this figure lies at just over 20%, with 119 of the 577 restaurants being franchised. It is McDonald’s’ intention that by the end of this year, franchised restaurants will represent over 30% of the total UK business. McDonald’s charge franchisees a levy on sales. This levy consists of a service fee of 4%, and a rent charge of 7%. Clearly, an increase in the number of franchised restaurants leads to the direct effect of an increase in McDonald’s’ revenues. McDonald’s can also boast that it is the largest retail property owner in the world. Quality, Service, Cleanliness McDonald’s use the finest available products and carefully developed formulae. They also encourage their employees to check products that they prepare or serve. McDonald’s believe that “cleanliness is a magnet drawing customers to their restaurants” (McDonald's Crew Handbook 1996), and therefore aim to ensure that their restaurants are spotless at all times, both inside and out. Quality and cleanliness, however, are wasted without fast, courteous service. McDonald’s firmly believe that a smile does as much to bring a customer back as does the best food in the world. McDonald’s always reminds its employees that the customer is the most important single factor in their business. They also train their employees to treat everyone, especially the customer, in the way that they would want to be treated themselves. Mystery Diners, employed by the company, visit each store once a month checking that overall customer service requirements are met. McDonald’s believe that through delivering great levels of QSC, (Quality, Service, Cleanliness), 100% customer satisfaction can be achieved, enabling them to become the UK’s favourite quick service restaurant. Treatment of Workforce McDonald’s state that they value people most by being: Reliable In doing what they say they’ll do. Safe In operating practices which protect their custome...