McDonald’s Corporation is the world’s largest restaurant chain. Its employees quickly prepare and serve such fast food items as hamburgers, French fries, and chicken nuggets. McDonald’s owns or franchises about 31,000 restaurants in nearly 120 countries. Franchise holders operate a restaurant with the company’s permission. McDonald’s employs about 1.5 million workers and serves almost 60 million customers daily.
In 1940, Maurice and Richard McDonald started the first McDonald’s restaurant in San Bernardino, California. In 1954, a salesman named Ray Kroc became McDonald’s national franchising agent. Kroc was impressed with the restaurant’s quick service and with its profits.
Kroc purchased all corporate rights in 1961 for $2.7 million. By 1970, McDonald’s restaurants had spread across the United States. Kroc maintained consistent food standards in each location and expanded the menu. The company also began heavily marketing food to children, introducing Happy Meals and a corporate mascot, a clown named Ronald McDonald. McDonald’s headquarters are in Oak Brook, Illinois.
See also Fast food ; Hamburger ; Simplot, J. R. .
