McDonald's Corporate Focuses on Delivery... But Franchisees Aren't Lovin' It

McDonald’s is reporting “positive global and domestic same-store sales” for its 2018 Q4 earnings report, despite lower guest counts, according to an article in The Spoon. The ubiquitous burger chain is also considering delivery as a “particularly lucrative area for McDonald’s moving forward,” the article said.

In 2017, McDonald’s launched an exclusive partnership with Uber Eats, the article says, and “19,000 McDonald’s restaurants globally offer delivery, making it a $3 billion business,” according to the article. “CEO Steve Easterbook noted the company will make delivery a ‘high priority’ in 2019,” according to the article.

The move is stoking mounting tensions between McDonald’s corporate and the brand’s franchisees, the article said. According to the article, about 400 McDonald’s franchisees formed the National Owners Association (NOA) in 2018, and the majority of approximately 800 franchisees surveyed about delivery said they were “not satisfied with the economics” of the Uber Eats delivery monopoly.

Read the full article here.