McDonald’s is one of the biggest and most well-known fast-food chains in the world, with over 40,000 locations across more than 100 countries. It's got a fascinating history that might surprise you, especially if you're munching on one of their burgers right now. But despite its long and dynamic past, McDonald's is still a major player in the fast-food industry, with a strong global brand and a loyal customer base.
It's incredible to think that McDonald's first day of sales was a meagre $366.12 on April 15, 1955, when they opened their first franchise. But fast forward to today, and the food giant is raking in billions in sales and revenue. In 2022, the company reported close to $9 billion in sales from company-operated restaurants, and franchised restaurants brought in around $14 billion.
But let's take a trip down memory lane to see how it all began. The story of McDonald's starts with two brothers, Dick and Mac McDonald, who moved to California to seek out new opportunities. After failing in the movie business, they eventually found success in operating drive-in restaurants. They took a chance and decentralised their business in 1948, launching the 'Speedee Service System' with hamburgers priced at 15 cents. The brothers started franchising their concept as a result of the restaurant's popularity.
Dick and Mac McDonald developed their Speedee Service System in San Bernardino, with a constrained menu that comprised hamburgers, shakes, and fries for fifteen cents each. Including their original location in San Bernardino, they sold 14 franchises, of which 10 became operational restaurants.
Enter Ray Kroc, a native of Chicago who dropped out of high school after his second year to join the Red Cross Ambulance Corps during World War One. He came home once the war was over, first earning a living as a musician before peddling paper cups. He took on the role of sole distributor for the Multimixer milkshake mixer in 1939. In 1954, Ray was motivated to work as the McDonald brothers' franchise agent after visiting them. The first McDonald's east of the Mississippi River was inaugurated by him in 1955.
From there, McDonald's continued to grow and innovate, adding new items to the menu like the Filet-O-Fish, the Big Mac, the Quarter Pounder, and Chicken McNuggets. They even opened Hamburger University in the basement of one of their Illinois restaurants in 1961, where graduates received Bachelor of Hamburgerology degrees.
McDonald's also committed to social responsibility, publishing its first-ever Social Responsibility Report in 2002. And in 1974, they opened the first Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, providing a home away from home for families of children undergoing medical treatment.
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