I just sold my McDonald's that I build and owned for 5 years, ask me absolutely anything!

How many complimetary ketchup packets could i take before i could get kicked out?

All of them. Just ask for the box.

Would you ever have given me the Big Mac sauce? Because no-one ever lets me have it on my fries.

Yeah, of course! We can do that by squirting some into a sundae lid, and charging you for one sachet of Mayo, which is 40c. Suggest this to the server next time you're there, they're still making money off of it!

TIL sachet of mayo

/r/TodayWeAllLearned

In Canada, the ketchup is self-service, so I guess you can take the jar and bring it home. Free ketchup for the next months.

Oh wow!

If we can put a man on th moon... Why can't I have an egg mc muffin after 10:30?

Because we have to clean our grills in order to ensure food safety.. Sorry!

Why, WHY WHY did they discontinue hot mustard sauce?

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?

In all seriousness what does a brother have to do to get it back? I pretty much have no reason to ever return to McDonald's again until hot mustard sauce has been restored.

To be honest, if corporate sees that there is a wide spread of interest in something returning - they'll give it back to you! You must speak people!

Do a petition, get loads of names on it, and submit it to them. You never know.

About what % of your revenue did you personally take home as income after operating costs?

I took home 15%, which was around $600,000 last year.

Goddamn. That's 200k a branch. I need me a franchise. USD?

USD that's 572k. You're probably better off having a scan of their site though. Join Us.

sdlanodcM nioJ

.'nioj' fo gnilleps eht degnahc :TIDE

tIdloScM/u/ ot sknahT

*s'ldanodcM nioJ

You spelt 'Join' wrong..

How much work was required of you per week on average? If my goal were to own one McDonalds and do the minimum amount of work possible, while also running it well, how low do you think I could get that weekly number of hours? And what would I be doing in that time?

I would work 9am - 5pm, 6 days a week. Mostly I'm at my office sorting problems remotely from there. I liked to pop down to my couple stores at least a couple times a day and check on them - make sure they're clean, and to check on the Restaurant Manager about any issues. Typically I used to work hard for 4-6 hours a day, with the rest out in the stores just checking on them.

What was your worst customer experience?

People swearing at me when they realize who I am. I've been blamed for the hospitalization of an individual due to obesity. Wasn't my fault - they just didn't balance their diet.

They should have eaten ONLY at McDonalds. They'd have lost the weight.

Thanks for the link - I'll have a wee read of it!

A wee read...

You are definitely hanging round with the Irish lads aren't you?

EDIT: Shit, lads I was just messin, the Irish say wee too. Didn't say it wasn't a Scottish thing, and we do share a lot culturally. Alcoholism for instance.

Hahaha, oh goodness.

What was your best experience owning that McDonald's?

To be honest, dealing with some of the staff that worked there. Yeah I admit, I was an ass at times, but they were all hard working guys. The Restaurant Manager always did their best to have an efficient and tidy store, and we both had a mutual respect for eachother.

That and actually opening my store after a year of planning. The first day of operation is always a big one, and it is a huge relief to not only myself, but also the corporate team.

Whats your weight?

Ninja edit: I know, I am mean

Ooh, snappy! I'm 102kg, which is around 220 pounds I believe. Too potato to Google.

Also, what's your favorite burger?

And what the hell do you out in those delicious french fries?

I always loved a McChicken, but adding cheese. With our fries, we just deep fry them in Vege Oil, salt them then serve!

which is around 220 pounds I believe

Very good! 224.872lbs to be exact. That would have won you the showcase on Price is Right.

Damn I'm good.

NZ sounds quite isolated in terms of geography. Where were from your raw materials suppliers?

All local here in New Zealand. The only external goods we get imported is Heinz Ketchup. It's great for the economy.

Will you expound upon this please? I've heard that McDonalds is actually really good for the local farm economy but most people don't know that. What did you buy local and what did you import? did you see an overall positive impact on the farm and animal raining communities in your region? also: Totally jealous of your NZ locale. Want to go there one day. I'm sure I will, but it'll be a decade or so from now.

Everything is sourced from within New Zealand. Eggs from Nelson, Bacon from Nelson too, Beef from the Waikato. It is a stable boost for the economy - it means the farmers and the providers have a steady source of income, which allows them to grow considerably.

Did you have to provide the recipes, or how this has worked? I mean there are buns, burgers, pies, ice cream, milkshakes, nuggets, particular type of potatoes... I would really like to know that.

From what I know, the suppliers were given the recipes, and we just order from them like you would normally. Corporate adjusts the recipes depending on what is available in the country, and they just make it work.

Do you have any regrets?

In hindsight, yes. Having the foodcourt store really damaged the company financially, especially after it closed - barely broke even on my initial investment, which was heart breaking.

Hi, thank you for doing this AMA. Few questions.

What kind of qualifications is required to open a Mcdonald's franchise (apart from money, is there certain critiera you must fulfill)? How much capital are you required to have to open a McDonalds and what exactly do you own?

I own a few service stations and have always been fascinated with fast food shops.

• You're required to have a business degree, or a successful business career. You're also required to put in $650,000 to help start up.
• McDonald's owns the land, and the building. That's how corporate earns their money - through lease. I only own what is inside the store.

Service stations have always intrigued me - much more interesting than fast food outlets.

Thanks for the reply, that sounds very similar to service station industry, except there are 3 parties involved. The landlord owns the petrol station itself, whilst everything else is owned by franchisor with the franchisee just operating the service station.

With the amount of gross income turning over, it seems like you're a high paid employee, but you bear all the risk of a business owner. Does McD do anything to help you improve your sales or try maximize the profits from your property whilst you run it? Or do they just monitor it and show up from time to time to ensure everything is running smoothly?

That's quite interesting to see how a servo is run!

Yeah, we have a long way to fall sometimes. But the benefit of operating under such a huge umbrella like McDonald's is that you don't have to market yourself, worry about stock issues, or innovation - that's all done for you. All I have to do is make sure everything is working efficiently at my end.

What would you say is the maximum amount of McD you could run by yourself (without exceeding 40 hours per week)? Or is there no limit, as in, you could hire a district manager and regional manager etc.?

You could always hire a District Manager or something, it just comes down to whether or not you have the effort for it. For example I know of somebody in the country who owns 11 McDonald's which are spaced throughout the country!

Will you try and open up a new franchise is the future? If you do, I highly suggest Whataburger !

We can't get Whataburger north of Alabama or west of Texas...

If anyone read this and is coming from the South to Chicago anytime soon. I need a Honey Butter Chicken biscuit. Stat

Edit: made a guess and fudged up the western extent of Whataburgers reach

If anybody's coming to NZ - sneak one in for me. stat

I'm not too sure, I'm trying to get out of the food industry. But I'll definitely have a look into it, seen as though there aren't any outlets in New Zealand.

Were you a Stubborn McDonalds Owner?

Good god, that was a good laugh!

Do you consider MCD to have been a good franchise? Do you think you would have done better if you had opened a Taco Bell or a Wendys or something? The market just seems very saturated with McD. Seems like it would take some of the excitement out of owning one.

Also, and plans to work for McD in the future? Maybe as an executive or something? Seems like you have a lot of history with the company.

Overall, yeah, I consider my time at McDonald's to be quite an eye opener of sorts. It's kind of hard to say, but there's always room for improvement, and there's always "what if" scenarios. And yeah, to be honest, I am bored with McDonald's. The first few months of a store's life are always the most exciting - because you have to weed out the problems. It just gets so efficient that it bores me sometimes.

At this stage, no. My plans are to isolate myself from McDonald's and move into a field that not only makes a difference, but also interests me. Thanks for the question!

You come across as a level headed franchisee, would you mind coming to the UK to replace the asshat bellend who runs our stores please?

Happily. And thanks!

What age did you lose your virginity?

Haha, goodness, 17.

What was the worst thing an individual did whilst employed/being interviewed by you?

Whilst interviewing for a Restaurant Manager I had somebody pick their nose and 'roll and flick' it. Haha, they didn't get the position.

Safe to say they didn't really want the position? Like maybe they we're on parole and putting off having a job? Or were they just socially inept?

Oh boy, socially inept is an understatement.

Where did you get the experience to start your first one?

From about the age of 19 I worked at McDonald's, worked my way up from the bottom, and eventually became a Shift Manager. I went to College and got a Business Degree, got a loan, and built a McDonald's! They say that McDonald's employees always notice the best places for new McDonald's, they aren't kidding. This helped choose the position for my first store.

hi. about the loan - how much did you have to put in and what was your credit situation then for you to get approved for a $650k biz loan? basically, how does one get $650k to start a mcD? thanks.

The bank saw me as a viable 'investment', and they saw that McDonald's loans pay off very quickly, and the chances are, if I got a loan with them, I'd bank with them too. So that's my thinking behind it.

What about someone who has the funds but has zero experience running a food restaurant?

Approach your corporate office. You don't necessarily need the hands-on experience in regards to service, but you will need some experience in running a business, so a degree would help in that department.

Since this is an AMA and youve been forthcoming when it comes to gross income, what was your net? What was the biggest portion of costs? Did you have any control over menu, pricing etc?

Last year, across my two stores the total turnover was just over $4 million, which was a little lower than usual. After expenses, We'd gross just over $3 million.

We had a surprising amount of control over the cost of our menu actually, as it all depends on our position in relation to the suppliers. That's why Corporate always asks to ring your local McDonald's for information when you're asking them about pricing.

What's the quality of food actually like there? I know people love to rant on about McD's being horrible quality and packed with chemicals etc. but I have never read about what is genuinely in the food. I have always assumed the quality for such a dominant chain must be held to tight regulations and that maybe it is not as bad as people make it out to be.

Not doing a plug for Macca's here, but the food quality is actually fairly good. No chemicals in them, at least not anymore and there hasn't been for a fair while - they're old wive's tales. Sure - we might not use the best parts of the chicken for the nuggets, but there's no beaky bullshit going on there.

Do you eat the food? Be it occasionally or regularly? Thanks.

Very occasionally. I don't know why, but I'm not actually too fond of McDonald's - ever since I started working there as a teen.

[deleted]

I drive a BMW M6.

[deleted]

It has enough powerrrrrrrrrr

What (if anything) would you say Burger King does better than Mc D's?

They flame grill their stuff! Like my god, it's so good! I swear if McDonald's did that, everything would just be better - apart from flame grilling Filets.. that's just weird.

Huh. I guess the burgers are better at hungry jack's.

They are.

i feel like company get together type things are avoided so much in fast food when that would be an amazing thing for the culture of the workplace do you do anything like that?

When I had my two stores - yeah! We used to have Crew Days where we would go to the beach or something, and have a barbecue. There were about 70 staff at our last one (Late 2013), and it was a great time to forge some friendships and bonds between stores.

Is that what you meant?

What made you choose mc D?

Initially, before opening my first store, I was actually a Shift Manager at a store around 80km from where I based these stores. I saw an opportunity for business, and I took it.

Was working at McDonalds as a shift manager your only job at that point? How on earth did you afford the franchise opening costs/liquid assets requirements?

It was my only job, and it managed to get me through University. I actually resigned from McDonald's after I got my degree. I then got a hefty loan from the bank, and brought into McDonald's. The bank said yes, as long as I signed up my company accounts with them, so that was done!

so you had no upfront out-of-pocket investment? it was all a loan?

(maybe this is how business always works, and i'm just clueless)

It was all a loan, correct.

Anything that you could have done differently? In hindsight?

I would have pressed harder for a location nearer to the highway. We were on an offshoot, and I feel like the convenience of two of the stores were affected by this.

Hi! Thanks for doing this.

My question is:

• How hard was it to manage your outlet in the beginning?

• Were there any harshness from the McDonald's corporation side of things when things went bad on your end?

• How much were you making a day on average just before you sold your outlet?

• At the beginning, it was very difficult. But McDonald's have some good processes in place for support of new franchisees, and they helped me immensely.

• They were very harsh - but fair. At the end of the day, I am an extension of their brand, and if something goes wrong, it is my fault. And its also my job to get it fixed, and ensure processes are put in place to make sure that it doesn't happen again.

• The average monthly gross income across the two stores last year was $341,462. Divide that by 30, which is $11,382 per day across two outlets, or an average $5,691 per outlet, per day.

So you say it doesn't pay off to own a McDonalds chain in New Zealand?

I'm not saying that at all as a generalized statement. The thoroughfare running through the McDonald's location was falling, therefore sales were falling, hence why I have sold the store. Believe me though, owning a McDonald's is one of the best things I have done.

How much profit did you make off of all of them?

A hell of a lot. I averaged $3.87 million dollars total turnover per year over 12 years of owning McDonald's franchises, which is around $46 million.

How much did you sell for?

I'm not stating exactly, but it was just above $1.4 million.

How did you pull together the funds to purchase your first franchise?

I got a loan from the bank, but I easily paid it off within the first 10 months of operation.

So what's next? How much money did you make annually? Will you make enough money from selling that you will be able to retire? Sorry to be so intrusive, obviously don't answer if you're uncomfortable doing so.

I really couldn't mind! It's an ask me anything ;)
Last year the two stores produced a combined turnover of just over $4 million. After 12 years of being with McDonald's - yeah, I probably could retire. But I want to move into a field where I can actually make a difference and do something that I love, so I hope to keep working.

Thanks!

If you're not too fond of McDonald's, then what is your favorite fast food chain?

I actually quite like Subway.

In that time did you make enough money to retire? I know someone who started up his own comic book store and in only ten years he claimed he made enough money to retire and shut the store down and sold everything off.

After having my first store for 5 years, I could have retired and lived nicely.

You said that you pocketed 1.4 million dollars from the sale of a restaurant. Why would someone pay you 1.4 million when they could open their own store for 600k?

Because the restaurant has already been established. The local customer base knows about it, and they will keep coming back. It actually seems to me like they're not buying the business, but they're buying the customer base.

Hi, My brother owns two stores here in Australian and my girlfriend is a kiwi. She always gets upset at me and my brother, and Australian McDonald's as a whole when we go to McDonalds and they don't have a hot chocolate machine through drive through (apparently huge over there). I don't have a question, but can you please tell her to chill out about it? It's not a big deal Cheers

Dear /u/tacoslammer's girlfriend.

At McDonald's sometimes we don't have stuff - it happens. But we have lot's of alternatives, like McCafe hot chocolates, or filter coffee, or you can purchase a white tea and buy a couple flakes and chuck 'em in and do a little bit of a DIY job. But it'll be okay. There are bigger problems. And remember, chocolate will always be there for you to help you through the bad times. McDonald's will be too. Go to McDonald's though. /r/ShamelessPlug

Regards,
/u/McSoldIt

Why there is no vegetarian burgers at McDonalds? I mean, Wendy's, A&W, Burger King, etc, have a vegie burger but McDonalds not.

Unfortunately we dont - which is a pain.

How much control did you have over the shop, versus the corporate oversight of McDonalds Inc.?

To be honest with you, I have very limited control in the way the store was developed, and run. Color schemes, furniture and interior fittings are all 'suggested' by corporate. Operations-wise however is completely over to me. It is up to me and the Restaurant Manager to ensure that the processes are followed, otherwise we'd bare the brunt of the 'corporate storm'.

As a New Yorker in Australia, I'm so saddened that your side of the world does not have the mcgriddle, what is this about?

Ah, but wait! The McGriddle is a limited time thing here in New Zealand, and it is coming back from July the 26th for a limited time as a part of the 'Only at Macca's' promotion.

Shameless plug for McDonald's - ain't even fazed.

How did you initially acquire the stores? They don't allow borrowed money. Did you actually save up $650,000 to open your first store by working there?

Also, your pickles are really tasty. Ar you allowed to sell them to customers by the bag?

I got a business loan from the bank for a sum of 650k, and discussed with McDonald's about the opening of a store in my area - they were all for it!

Regarding the pickle situation.. Hmm.. You should be able to purchase them from the supplier, but I don't think we can sell them to you, because that means we'll have less stock in store, so I won't make money off of it!

Thank you for doing this AMA. I have always thought about opening a McDonald's.

• How much did you borrow and how much of your own money did you put into your first store?

• Did corporate like the fact that you were a former manager and waive/loosen any requirements for you because of this?

• I borrowed the total amount of funds to open my first store.
• I think they liked it - it meant that I didn't have to go through the 10-12 months of unpaid training, which was pretty primo!

Hopefully that answers your questions!

Why not just keep the McRib on the menu permanently?

We don't have the McRib here, but I'm guessing that it's either to create a false demand for it, or because the stock that is required to make the item doesn't break even in the long-run.

Do I want fry's with that? Would I like two apple pies for a dollar?

Two apple pies for a dollar? Damn, that is good value.

Would you locations make a McGangbang if i ordered it? Instead of me assembling it later.

If you wanted them too, and they weren't busy - there's nothing stopping them!

Hi Mate, Where did you get the original capital outlay for the first store, and how old are you?

Corporate recommended a layout for the store, but we made a few modifications that we felt would benefit us the most.

I'm 36.

Yeah, that's not the exact question I asked, but seeing as I work for a commercial interior design company I guess it's a damn good response to one I didn't even think of asking! lol.

Sweet, I guess there's time for me to own a franchise yet!

Mate there's always time. If you want it - go for it.

How much did it cost you, and how much did it sell for? Is flipping McDonalds a profitable business, or were you lucky to get out with your shirt?

The two stores cost me a total of $1.2 million to set up, however they've had a profit turnover of $42 million over their operational lives so far. The money I sold this store for (~$1.4 million) went straight into my pocket.

Do the filet o fishes in New Zealand and other countries use different fish than the US or the same? I love those things :>

We source our Filet locally from the South Island of New Zealand, and is Hoki Fillet. I believe the American chains actually source their Filet from us!

You're always writing that you want to make a difference and do something that you love.
I know you probably just want to keep your business idea secret, but could you go a bit more into detail about what you want to do next ?

Or do you just don't know yet ?

I want to keep it relatively secret seen as though it is quite a specialized market here in New Zealand, but it is to do with Transportation.

You have said you want to get out of the food industry. Could you outline why?

And what industry are you trying to move into?

Food industry is pretty variable, so I want to move into something more stable. I'm not disclosing that specifically seen as though it's a pretty niche market, but it's to do with transport.

is it possible for someone to own a franchise like McDonalds without first have $200,000 US to invest?

Nearly impossible. You need that initial high-end investment for the initial lease agreement and appliances. So you'd be very hard pressed to do it for under that.

Thank you. I am a co-founder of a US non-profit organization that encourages US middle and high school kids to study the hard subjects of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM subjects). Do you know of any philanthropic individuals who would like to learn more about us?

Shameless plug, but okay.