McDonald’s for all

As one of the world’s most recognizable global brands, McDonald’s sure owes a lot of its success to ordinary people like you and me. You’d be surprised just how much we have contributed to our favourite neighbourhood McDonald’s restaurant.

Who owns McDonald’s?

In spite of persistent speculation on the matter of who exactly owns McDonald’s, these rumours are largely inaccurate. As a company traded publicly on the New York Stock Exchange since 1965, McDonald’s Corporation has more than 1.8 million shareholders as of March 2014; with not a single shareholder owning more than 10% of its shares. This means that you can be an owner of McDonald’s too!

It takes a village

Serving approximately 69 million people every day around the world, a good 80% of McDonald’s 36,000 restaurants are owned and operated by its franchisees; local entrepreneurs with a keen understanding of their own markets and unparalleled access to the resources that can help them succeed.

On the local front, almost a quarter of McDonald’s Malaysia’s 260 restaurants nationwide are owned and operated by local franchisees. In addition to that, McDonald’s deals with over 400 local suppliers. What’s more, MacFood Malaysia – its main supplier – actually serves up to 14 countries in the Asia Pacific and Middle East markets.

There is no place like home

To the 12,000 Malaysians employed by McDonald’s, the quick-service restaurant is more than just a fun place to earn a living. Take tough cookie Nur Qaisara Aisyah for instance; the lass from Sabah answered an ad upon graduation from Universiti Malaya and in four short years have rocketed from a freshie to being a restaurant manager. If you need a career counsellor, we’ve got just the lady for you.

“I really enjoy working with our youngsters as it makes me feel young as well!” she enthused. “My team members are from different backgrounds and age groups, and I get to apply my knowledge of counseling and psychology to keep the team engaged.”

Her story is one shared by many of the other restaurant managers in McDonald’s restaurant nationwide (side note: a whopping 50% of these restaurant managers are women!)

My customers, my friends

For franchise owners like Azmi Jusoh, his restaurants have grown into a platform for him to give back to the community in which he conducts his business. This local hero is probably best known to his customers for awesome good deeds; like supporting flood relief efforts, initiating the sponsorship of a playland at the Marang Special Children’s Daycare, donating a bed for a cancer patient in need and taking under-privileged children on a shopping spree!

“Many of my regular customers are people that we grew up with here in Kuala Terengganu. My wife and I always make it a point to interact with our customers on a regular basis to make them feel at home at our restaurants,” said Azmi. “We’ve come to know many of our customers as friends and are always happy to see them drop by for a cup of coffee or even just for a chat with their friends.”

So what are you waiting for? Drop by your favourite McDonald’s restaurant today and give a shout-out to your fellow Malaysians doing what they do best – making you feel right at home.

If you’re interested in finding out more about the ownership of McDonald’s, you should visit the following links: