Frustrated McDonald's (MCD) Franchisees Highlighted in Bloomberg Businessweek

In the new issue of Bloomberg Businessweek, online today and on newsstands on Friday, Bryan Gruley and Leslie Patton examine The Frustrating Life of the McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) Franchisee.

There are 5,000 McDonald’s franchisees around the world. They run 82 percent of the chain’s 36,000-plus restaurants and generate a third of its $27.4 billion in annual revenue. And they're frustrated.

Al Jarvis, who started working at a McDonald’s in 1965 and opened his first franchise in 1981, parted ways with the company in 2014. Jarvis spoke openly and candidly to Bloomberg Businessweek about the conflicting agendas between headquarters and store operators, including the launch of the McWrap in 2013, and all-day breakfast this month.

Highlights from the story:

--He questions whether executives at headquarters will figure out how to innovate while staying true to the chain’s promise of serving good-tasting food fast. “I don’t think they know what they want to do. They’re saying, ‘Let’s go back to basics,’ then they’re doing these customized burgers, and they’re talking about all-day breakfast. I feel sorry for the managers and the crew. That’s not our niche. We make burgers and fries.”

--If he were McDonald’s CEO, he says, he’d get rid of the bagels, wraps, and salads and move the foo-foo drinks to standalone McCafés in strip malls. He likes the idea of using kiosks for custom ordering, which he says should improve order accuracy and reduce arguments with customers.

Read the story here: http://buswk.co/McDfranchisee

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