Monday, September 19, 2011

McDonald's Global Market- Alyssa Bufis

Today McDonald’s is a household name. It does not matter if one decides to eat McDonald’s or not, one still knows about those special golden arches. Since the mid-1900s McDonald’s has grown exponential in sales; however, the infamous chain still faces some challenges and opportunities as it continues to expand. One challenge regarding McDonald’s is their food and its nutritional level. Many customers are shocked to learn that McDonald’s burgers are so high in calories and fat; therefore, McDonald’s is beginning to advertise healthier options for customers included apples slices, milk, yogurt, and salads, while still focusing on selling endless burgers and fries. I believe if McDonald’s did not begin to advertise healthier options then a certain portion of their clientele would have eventually left because not all parents are willing to feed their kids a 250 calorie hamburger with a 230 calorie order of fries finished with a 150 calorie soda for lunch.[1] Nutrition is a key challenge for McDonald’s, but like stated in the video by CNBC Big Mac: Inside the McDonald’s Empire, McDonald’s is a business, it does not care what it sells, but rather that it sells. Which means that nutrition will not stop McDonald’s from growing, they will overcome that challenge.

Therefore, McDonald’s has numerous opportunities to grow their clientele and one way is by going international. A key example of an international opportunity is McDonald’s expansion in China, a country with a 1.3 billion population. Mentioned in the CNBC video, Jeff Schwartz, the CEO of McDonald’s China imagines over 10,000 restaurants opening in the next few years. Schwartz’s vision demonstrates how McDonald’s does not plan to slow down anytime soon when it comes to their growth. However, as McDonald’s expands to other countries, the company will need to be aware that different countries and clienteles will demand different food than the American clientele. An example of these is reflected in our textbook regarding Domino’s pizza. Domino’s learned that people in Japan prefer pizza topped with squid and sweet mayonnaise. But McDonald’s is catching on to those preferences, too. For example, McDonald’s restaurants in Israel offers 100 percent kosher beef. As the company begins to learn more about the countries they are serving in the company will be able to expand even more.

McDonalds’ opportunities are endless. The chain restaurant serves over 64 million a daily and they will not stopping soon. The increasing restaurants around the world also can help lower unemployment rates in certain countries and help developing areas become more economically successful.



[1] http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food.html

1 comment:

Tricia Stacy said...

I agree with you that if they hadn’t started putting healthier choices on their menu, mother would start bringing their kids to subway which as less calories and it is better for their kids while still having that grab and go style. They would not be such a worldwide company and have the number of customers as they do today. Also, by spreading their company to greater populated countries is a great marketing technique. If they keep coming up with more options for the customers their profit will have a steady increase for the up and coming years. I like how you said they don’t care about what is in what they sell, as long as it sells. I believe they don’t either because they know all the controversy over there calorie counts in their food but they think that it is not hurting their company because the numbers are still up. I think that if they don’t fix that their numbers will go down and they will regret not doing something about it sooner. I agree that the “golden arches” are a well-known household name and that they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.