A new era for Russian fast food and the financial scene dawned on Sunday as McDonald’s (MCD.N) restaurants opened their doors in Moscow under new Russian ownership and under the new name, which translates as “Delicious and that’s “. The change of store name, three decades after the American burger giant first opened in Moscow in a symbolic thaw between East and West, is once again a strong sign of a new world order. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register The assets of the renewed chain, which McDonald’s sold when it left the country due to the conflict in Ukraine, could be a test of how successfully Russia’s economy can become more self-sufficient and withstand Western sanctions. On Sunday, dozens of people lined up outside what was once McDonald’s top restaurant in central Moscow. The store brought a new logo – a stylized burger with two french fries – plus a slogan that read: “The name changes, love stays”. The queue was significantly smaller than the thousands of people who gathered at the inauguration of the original McDonald’s there in 1990 during the Soviet era. Vkusno & tochka’s menu was smaller and did not offer the Big Mac and a few other hamburgers. A double cheeseburger cost 129 rubles ($ 2.31) compared to about 160 at McDonald’s and a fish burger for 169 rubles, compared to about 190 before. The composition of the burgers has not changed and the equipment from McDonald’s has remained, said Alexander Merkulov, quality manager at the new company. Sergei, a 15-year-old customer, saw little difference. “The taste has remained the same,” he said as he tossed a chicken burger and french fries. “The cola is different, but there really is no change in the burger.” Workers take part in preparations ahead of the opening of a new restaurant following McDonald’s Corp.’s decision to sell its restaurants in Russia to one of its local franchisees, who will rename them in Moscow, Russia, June 12, 2022 REUTERS / Eugenia Novozenina read more
VERY DIFFERENT?
Moscow’s iconic restaurant is among the 15 renamed stores that will initially open in and around the capital on Sunday. Oleg Paroev, CEO of Vkusno & tochka, said the company plans to reopen 200 restaurants in Russia by the end of June and all 850 by the end of the summer. The chain will retain the old McDonald’s interior, but will eliminate any reference to its former name, said Paroev, who was appointed CEO of McDonald’s Russia weeks before Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops to Ukraine on February 24. “Our goal is for our guests not to notice a difference in either quality or atmosphere,” Paroev told a news conference at the restaurant. He said the chain would maintain “affordable prices”, but did not rule out small increases in the near future. McDonald’s closed its restaurants in Russia on March 14 and announced in mid-May that it had decided to leave the market. “We did not work for three months,” said Ruzana, director of the Moscow branch, which will open in July. “Everyone is very happy.” Alexander Govor, the new owner of the chain, said up to 7 billion rubles ($ 125.56 million) would be invested this year in the company, which employs 51,000 people. “My company asked me, first of all, to keep the number of employees, to give people jobs. That is what I will do,” he added. Govor said the company was looking for new suppliers of soft drinks such as Coca Cola (KO.N), which said it had suspended operations in Russia. Moments after the end of the press conference, a man stood in front of the cameras holding a sign that read “Bring back the Big Mac”. He was quickly accompanied by the restaurant staff. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Reuters. Curated by Pravin Char Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
