McDonald’s: the most impressive touchpoints of the world’s most famous fast food brand
McDonald’s was originally founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a barbecue restaurant. Eight years after its founding, the then family-owned company changed its product range and is now the world’s top-selling fast food company. Every day, 1.6 million guests visit a McDonald’s restaurant. Worldwide, 75 burgers are sold per second. McDonald’s operates 39,200 restaurants worldwide; of these, over 80% are franchised. Compared to other fast food brands, McDonald’s is not only probably the best known fast food brand, but also has the most valuable brand value worldwide. With a brand value of almost 155 billion US dollars, McDonald’s is the most valuable fast food brand in the world in 2021.
1. McDonald’s logo1
Two golden arches on the roof at each end decorated the first McDonald’s restaurant. The “Golden Arches” were the trademark at this time. The idea behind that was that hungry drivers could see the fast food restaurant from afar and pull off the road in time. Only later the golden arches were changed to an „M“ in the logo. The McDonald’s logo known today was first introduced in 1962.
2. McDonald’s stores2
Today, there are 39,200 McDonald’s restaurants worldwide. McDonald’s is the second largest restaurant brand in Germany with around 1,450 restaurants. In 1948, the brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the first restaurant in San Bernadino, California. It was not until 1971 that the first German McDonald’s opened in Munich. While McDonald’s launched its first McDrive 1975 in Sierra Vista, Arizona, the first German McDrive was introduced in 1983 at the Ludwigsburg restaurant.
3. McCafé3
Out of 3,110 McCafés in Europe, McCafé in Germany with 840 branches is one of the leading providers in the German coffee shop market. With the new concept “Restaurant of the Future”, the offer of “Barista made Coffee” was launched in over 1100 branches. This involves espresso-based hot drinks made with portafilter machines. For all coffee products, McDonald’s now uses 100% Arabica beans from Segafredo, which bear the seal of the Rainforest Alliance, which stands for sustainable cultivation of coffee beans. The first McCafé opened in Australia in 1993.
4. McDelivery4
McDelivery started in Virginia in 1993. By working with delivery services such as Uber Eats, McDonald’s expanded globally over the next few years. McDelivery is now offered in 28 countries. In 2017, McDonald’s Germany launched its own delivery service. In addition to its own delivery service, customers in large parts of Germany can order from McDonald’s via the delivery service Lieferando.
5. Ronald McDonald5
Ronald McDonald is the official mascot of McDonald’s in the shape of a clown. The clown is also the figurehead for McDonald’s Children’s Charity and is almost as well known to American children as Santa Claus. The American magazine Advertising Age found out that Ronald McDonald is the second most successful advertising symbol of the 20th century after the Marlboro Man. After the horror clown attacks in August 2016, McDonald’s is withdrawing the mascot from the public eye for the time being.
6. The Big Mac6
The Big Mac is probably the most famous burger in the world. In 1968, franchisee Jim Delligatti invented the Big Mac, which has been the most popular burger ever since. It is the same size everywhere and tastes the same all over the world. The burger is sold 3.6 million times a day. The popularity of the Big Mac is also used to compare the purchasing power of different currencies (Big Mac Index). Next to the Big Mac, the red french fry box is the trademark of McDonalds.