Abstract

This case is about the international operations of McDonald's Corporation (McDonald's), one of the oldest chains of quick service restaurants in the world. Over the years, McDonald's had developed a thriving market globally and as of end 2008, had a presence in 121 countries. Analysts pointed out that while many restaurants and restaurant chains were facing hard times because of the economic slowdown, McDonald's had shown improvement in sales. Its international business had also helped insulate it from the housing-led US economic downturn, they said. The case discusses the various strategies that the company adopted in the international market including its localization, pricing, promotional, and operational strategies in various countries.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Evaluate McDonald's globalization strategies.
• Learn about the issues and challenges faced by a restaurant chain in expanding its business internationally.
• Examine localization strategies of McDonald's in different markets.
• Understand promotional and pricing strategies followed by McDonald's in some of the countries.

Keywords

Strategy, Globalization, Localization, Think Global Act Local, Expansion, Franchising, Culture, Visual merchandising, Economic downturn, Ethics, McDonald's