The American chain of fast food restaurants McDonald's has decided to leave Russia completely, according to a company statement released on Monday, May 16.
"After more than 30 years of operation in the country, McDonald's Corporation announced its withdrawal from the Russian market and initiated the process of selling its Russian business," the company's official website says.
The reasons for this decision in the corporation called the humanitarian crisis provoked by the events in Ukraine and the growing unpredictability of the working environment.
Under these conditions, the company considers further activities in Russia "more impractical" and intends to sell the entire portfolio of restaurants to a local buyer.
The new owner will not be allowed to use the McDonald's name, logo, brands and menu.
At the same time, the network intends to keep its trademarks in Russia.
Note that in early March, the organization announced the temporary closure of all its outlets in the country.
At that time, many international companies made similar decisions.
Foreign business began to massively suspend work in Russia against the backdrop of US and European sanctions against Moscow.
This is how the West reacts to the conduct of a military special operation in Ukraine.
However, a complete withdrawal from the Russian market will result in big losses for McDonald's, says Alexander Kalinin, president of the All-Russian Public Organization of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Opora Rossii.
According to him, it will no longer be possible to sell the business at the market value, which was at the end of 2021.
“A lot of money is invested in the cost of the brand, but they don’t want to leave it in Russia, so they will sell it at a significant discount.
For Russian restaurateurs, this is a plus.
A major player is leaving, and the demand for food outside the home remains with the population.
At the same time, McDonald's itself will lose a fairly large market.
It is clear that the company did not want to leave, but foreign authorities are forcing it to do so, ”said the interlocutor of RT.
AGN "Moscow"
Recall that the first restaurant of the McDonald's chain opened in Moscow on Pushkin Square on January 31, 1990.
He set a world record for the number of visitors on the first working day - served more than 30 thousand people.
By the beginning of March 2022, there were 850 McDonald's fast food restaurants in Russia.
In total, more than 62 thousand people work in the company's system on the territory of the country, and about 100 thousand more at the enterprises of suppliers.
After the suspension of restaurants in March, McDonald's continued to pay wages to its employees.
At the same time, recently the amount of payments has “significantly increased,” one of the network employees said in a conversation with RT.
“So far, there has been no official announcement from the management regarding the company's departure from Russia.
In March, when the organization only announced the suspension of activities in the country, the information reached the employees in the evening of the same day, ”the source added to RT.
Nevertheless, the company is going to continue fulfilling its obligations to the staff.
As specified in the organization, employees will receive wages until the completion of the sale of the business.
"Only the name will go away"
Meanwhile, at the beginning of summer, McDonald's may resume work in Russia, but under a different brand, TASS reported, citing a source in the company.
“McDonald's will return to Russia in June under a new brand.
The chain of restaurants and menus will be preserved, as will jobs.
More than 90% of suppliers are Russian, cooperation with them will continue.
In fact, only the name will leave, ”the agency reports.
According to Alexander Kalinin, the details of the sale of the business are still unclear.
As the expert noted, the main difficulty lies in the fact that McDonald's activities are built in two directions.
So, if the majority of chain restaurants in Russia are under the direct control of the company itself and have been closed for two months already, then some of the establishments operate on a franchise basis and continue to serve customers.
“It is not yet clear how exactly the company will deal with franchises, whether they will be allowed to keep the brand and menu.
Now the company is only talking about selling its own business.
She, for example, can assign her rights to one player, including franchises, but this will require the consent of all franchise owners, ”Kalinin suggested.
As a result of McDonald's exit from the country, the company's huge market share in the catering market can be divided among smaller Russian industry participants.
The process will take some time, but by the end of the year, restaurants closed today will reopen.
This opinion was shared with RT by intuitive eating expert Svetlana Bronnikova.
“Fast food is an area that even now, in difficult economic conditions, is able to provide a constant profit.
Moreover, McDonald's restaurants, as a rule, have a constant traffic of customers.
Everyone who works at such sites can quickly reorganize - it will be enough to slightly modify the names of dishes, recipes, and spend extra money on a new sign.
And the staff, buyers and suppliers will remain in their places, ”concluded the specialist.