Day 044 - 02 Nov 94 - Page 28
1 retired.
2
3 Q. He is quoted as saying:
4
5 "'McDonald's is an American food system. If we go into a
6 new country and incorporate their food products into our
7 menu, we lose our identity. We're neither fish nor fowl.'
8
9 "Rather than change their menus or their stores, McDonald's
10 foreign partners made major changes in marketing in order
11 to sell the American system."
12
13 If that is true, what major changes in marketing would
14 there be if there was resistance in a country to the core
15 menu of McDonald's?
16 A. Again, within the context of this particular quote,
17 I can only refer you back pretty much to what I know from
18 my own experience. You know, within the general context,
19 we have found it successful to introduce our core menu as
20 opposed to a different core menu, because McDonald's stands
21 for a particular menu.
22
23 As far as marketing -- at least as much as I have seen --
24 the context or the strategic overview of the marketing that
25 you have pretty much seen in the United States is, in
26 general, the same kind of marketing that I have seen in
27 other places around the world. But it would be customised,
28 obviously, to the tactics and the flavour of advertising
29 that would be indigenous to that country, because those
30 customers are, in fact, in that country and are used to
31 that kind of advertising.
32
33 Q. But is it not true that in a number of countries for a
34 number of years the newly opened or developed McDonald's
35 section makes a loss for the first five, 10 years, maybe?
36 A. I am aware of discussions that----
37
38 Q. In Canada and Britain?
39 A. ----there is an investment period, as in any new
40 product, in countries-----
41
42 Q. But in that situation, where it is making a loss year after
43 year, is that a situation where marketing would be, if you
44 like, doubly important?
45 A. It certainly would be important to make sure that
46 people understand what McDonald's stands for, understand
47 what our menu is, yes.
48
49 Q. What does McDonald's menu stand for?
50 A. It stands for hamburgers, french fries, soft drinks,
51 salads, fish sandwiches, and other things. It is pretty
52 much the menu that you are aware of.
53
54 Q. I mean, salads are not a standard menu item in this
55 country. I do not know if you happen to know whether in
56 other countries salads are automatically standard menu
57 items or not; do you know?
58 A. I know that they are in other countries, but I could
59 not tell you exactly which countries they are in.
60
