RT:
US fast food chain McDonald’s is reportedly seeking to take a tighter grasp of the Russian market by beginning franchising in the country. It’s all because the company is feeling the pressure from rivals Burger King and Wendy’s, RBC daily says.
Franchising in Russia will mark a new type of business development for McDonald’s, as during its 20 years in the country McDonald’s have always chosen to work without intermediaries. All of its 314 restaurants across 85 Russian cities are operated by the company. Elsewhere, almost 85% of McDonald’s global business is franchised – a business model that allows an independent operator to develop the existing brand in a given country following a prescribed model.
McDonald’s may choose franchising as the fastest way to expand, Ian Nikolaev, consumer goods analyst at Aton, explained Business RT.
“McDonald’s is primarily interesting in sustaining the same pace of growth. The fast food chain already has a lot of restaurants in Russia, it needs to open a lot more in real terms to keep growing at the same rate,â€he said.