History of McDonald's facts for kids

McDonald's logo since 2018

McDonald's is a famous American fast-food restaurant chain. It was started in 1940 by two brothers, Richard and Maurice. They opened their first restaurant in San Bernardino, California. At first, they sold barbecue, but their hamburgers became much more popular.

The brothers changed their business to focus on burgers. They even added the well-known Golden Arches to their restaurants. Later, a businessman named Ray Kroc joined them. He helped turn their small business into the huge, successful company we know today. Kroc encouraged them to expand across the country. Today, McDonald's is one of the largest restaurant chains in the world. It makes about $26 billion in revenue each year. The current CEO is Christopher J. Kempczinski.

The Start of McDonald's: Burgers and Golden Arches

The McDonald brothers, Richard and Maurice, founded McDonald's in California in the 1940s. Before their first restaurant, their family ran other businesses. In 1937, an orange juice stand opened in Monrovia, California. Some sources say the brothers started it, while others say their father, Patrick, did. In 1940, the brothers opened a barbecue stand in San Bernardino, California.

From Barbecue to Burgers: A New Idea

The first McDonald's restaurant opened on May 15, 1940. It was in San Bernardino, California. Initially, customers were served by carhops, who brought food to their cars. The menu focused on barbecue, and the business was called "McDonald's Famous Barbecue."

By 1948, the brothers noticed that hamburgers were their best-selling items. They decided to change their business model. They closed their successful carhop restaurant to create a simpler system. The new menu had only hamburgers, cheeseburgers, potato chips, coffee, ice cream, soft drinks, and apple pie.

Designing the Famous Golden Arches

In 1952, the brothers wanted a new building. They aimed for more efficiency and a striking look. They hired architect Stanley Clark Meston. Together, they designed a building with red and white tiles, stainless steel, and bright neon lights.

The new design featured two tall, yellow sheet-metal arches. These became known as the "Golden Arches." A smaller sign showed a character named Speedee, a chef in a hat. The brothers also designed the restaurant to encourage customers to eat quickly. For example, they used fixed seating and cone-shaped cups.

In late 1953, the brothers began looking for people to open new McDonald's restaurants. Their first franchisee was Neil Fox. His restaurant, with the Golden Arches design, opened in May 1953 in Phoenix, Arizona. It cost $1,000 to open. This was the first McDonald's to use the famous standardized design.

The second franchisee team was Roger Williams and Burdette "Bud" Landon. They opened their restaurant on August 18, 1953, in Downey, California. This Downey location is the oldest McDonald's still operating today.

The oldest operating McDonald's, in Downey, California, in March 2007.

Ray Kroc Joins the McDonald's Journey

Ray Kroc helped McDonald's become a global franchise.

In 1954, Ray Kroc was a salesman for milkshake machines. He learned that the McDonald brothers used eight of his machines. This made him curious, so he visited their restaurant in San Bernardino. The brothers already had six franchise locations.

Kroc believed the McDonald's idea could be a huge success. He suggested that the brothers expand their restaurants across the United States. The brothers were unsure if the self-service style would work everywhere. They were also happy with their current success.

Kroc's Big Idea: Expanding Across the Country

Kroc offered to take on the main responsibility for setting up new franchises. He returned to Chicago with the rights to open McDonald's restaurants nationwide. The brothers would receive a small percentage of the sales.

The Smart Real Estate Plan

In 1956, Kroc met Harry J. Sonneborn. Sonneborn had a clever idea to help McDonald's grow faster. He suggested that McDonald's should own the land where future restaurants would be built. Kroc hired Sonneborn, and they created a company called Franchise Realty Corp.

This new company bought land and buildings, then leased them to the franchisees. This "Sonneborn model" of owning real estate is still used today. It was a very important financial decision for the company. Today, McDonald's real estate is worth billions of dollars.

Growing Big: McDonald's in the 1960s

The Big Mac hamburger first appeared in 1968.

By 1960, McDonald's restaurants were earning $56 million each year. The rise of cars and new highways helped McDonald's grow. In 1961, Kroc and the founding brothers had different ideas for the company's future. Kroc decided to buy their share of the business.

The brothers asked for $2.7 million, which was a lot of money back then. Harry J. Sonneborn helped Kroc get the funds. Kroc then bought the brothers' interests in the company. This step helped McDonald's become the top fast-food chain.

Kroc and Sonneborn later disagreed on how to expand the company. Sonneborn left in 1967. Kroc then became the CEO and president. That same year, McDonald's opened its first restaurant outside the U.S. in Richmond, Canada.

In 1968, Herman Petty became the first African American to own a McDonald's franchise. This was an important step for diversity within the company.

New Foods and Global Steps

McDonald's grew in the 1960s by being good at marketing and listening to customers. In 1962, the Filet-O-Fish sandwich was introduced. It was advertised as "the fish that catches people." In 1967, Jim Delligatti created the Big Mac hamburger. It was added to McDonald's national menu the next year.

McDonald's Around the World: The 1970s

McDonald's Plaza in Oak Brook, Illinois, was the company's headquarters for many years.

New Zealand's first McDonald's restaurant opened in Porirua in 1976.

In 1970, the first McDonald's outside of Northern America opened in San José, Costa Rica. The next year, in 1971, McDonald's opened its first European restaurant in Zaandam, Netherlands. The first restaurant in Asia opened in Tokyo, Japan, in July 1971. In December that year, the first German restaurant opened in Munich. The first restaurant in Oceania opened in 1971 in Yagoona, Australia.

In 1972, the National Black McDonald's Operators Association (NBMOA) was formed. Herman Petty, the first African American franchisee, helped create this group. It gave Black voices a way to be heard within the company.

Some people doubted McDonald's could grow so much internationally. For example, when Wally and Hugh Morris wanted to bring McDonald's to New Zealand in 1974, Kroc was not keen. He thought there weren't enough people there. However, the Morris brothers eventually got a franchise in May 1975. They even sold New Zealand cheese to the U.S. to help with costs. The first New Zealand restaurant opened in June 1976 in Porirua. It was much more successful than expected. By this time, McDonald's had also expanded to countries like France, Sweden, Britain, and Hong Kong. By 1976, there were over 3,600 McDonald's restaurants in the U.S. and Canada.

In 1979, the first McDonald's in Southeast Asia opened in Singapore. That same year, the first restaurant in South America opened in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

More Growth and Fun Facts: The 1980s

The first McDonald's in Malaysia opened in Jalan Bukit Bintang on April 29, 1982.

On October 29, 1985, Saul Kahan opened the first McDonald's restaurant in Mexico City.

In 1984, McDonald's had a special promotion for the 1984 Summer Olympics. They promised free food items for every medal the U.S. team won. However, many countries boycotted the Olympics that year. This meant the U.S. won a lot of medals, 174 in total. Over 6,000 McDonald's locations faced food shortages because of this. The company likely lost millions of dollars.

In 1988, McDonald's Japan started offering prepaid cards. These cards, in different yen amounts, made payments faster.

New Ideas and Global Reach: The 1990s

The first McDonald's Express locations opened in 1991. These are smaller restaurants, often in pre-made buildings or city storefronts. They have a simpler menu and might not offer items like milkshakes or Quarter Pounders.

A McDonald's soft drink and ice cream stand in Sanya, China in 2005.

The first McDonald's in Mainland China opened in Dongmen, Shenzhen in October 1990.

The Extra Value Meal was introduced in 1993. This deal combined a burger, fries, and a drink. It was first part of a Jurassic Park movie promotion.

In September 1993, McDonald's Japan opened its 1,000th restaurant. They also planned to sell T-shirts and kimonos with the Golden Arches. They even released a video game with Ronald McDonald and Sega Enterprises, Ltd..

McDonald's expanded in the Middle East between 1993 and 1994. They opened stores in Israel, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Egypt, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates. In 1995, the first kosher McDonald's restaurant opened in Israel.

The McFlurry was created in 1995 by Ron McLellan. He was a Canadian McDonald's franchise owner in Bathurst, New Brunswick.

In 1997, the first McDonald's in Bolivia opened. However, by November 2002, McDonald's closed all its locations there. This was due to cultural reasons and financial losses. Bolivia and Cuba became the only Latin American countries without McDonald's. Later, rival chain Burger King took over these locations.

McDonald's also offered pizza on its menu during the 1990s.

McDonald's in the 2000s and 2010s

McDonald's logo used from 2003 to 2007.

After the 1990s, more than 11,000 McDonald's restaurants opened outside the United States. In 2000, a McDonald's in Dearborn, Michigan, was the first in Michigan to offer halal food for Muslim customers.

In January 2012, the company announced a record high revenue of $27 billion for 2011. They also planned to update 2,400 restaurants and open 1,300 new ones worldwide.

In the middle of the 2010s, McDonald's faced some challenges with profits. To help, they started offering a limited breakfast menu all day long in 2015. At first, some franchise owners worried it would slow down service. But the plan worked, and the company's earnings improved.

Recent Times: McDonald's in the 2020s

On March 8, 2022, McDonald's stopped operations at all 850 of its locations in Russia. This decision was made in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine. Many other Western companies made similar choices. The brand later relaunched on June 12, 2022, as 'Vkusno & tochka', which means 'Tasty and that's it'. This new chain is run by a local franchisee.

In July 2022, McDonald's bought its Florida franchisee, Caspers Company.