The company, which has Oleg Paroev as general manager, plans to open 200 branches by the end of June and all branches by the end of the summer, according to a press release. “If you remember, in May, McDonald’s announced that it would be removing its businesses from Russia. I’m very proud that I was chosen to continue growing this business. This means that the company sees me as fully committed to all business principles. and McDonald’s values, “Govor told a news conference. “I will not hide the fact that I am an ambitious person and therefore I am not just going to open all 850 restaurants, but I will also develop new ones,” he said. According to a press release, 62,000 former McDonald’s employees were also retained. The rebranding coincided with Russia Day, a celebration that marks the country’s independence. It took place at the same location on Moscow’s Pushkinskaya Square, where McDonald’s opened its first Russian restaurant on January 31, 1990. On the first day, 30,000 people were served – a McDonald’s record for a start day, the CBC reported at the time. The site even had to stay open for hours later than planned due to the crowds. About 630 employees were selected from 27,000 applicants, according to a 1990 Washington Post article. “About 32 years ago … there was a lot of people on Pushkinskaya Square when the first McDonald’s franchise opened here in Russia. It caused a great deal of madness. I think the madness will be as great as this new restaurant chain. With a new owner, a real businessman, “said Alexei Alexeyevich, head of Moscow’s trade department, at a news conference on Sunday. McDonald’s then expanded its reach into the country, and as of early March, there were approximately 850 locations operating in Russia. However, the chain decided to leave the country and sell its operations in Russia, according to several other Western companies after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in February. McDonald’s was charged nearly $ 1.4 billion after the sale to Govor, Reuters reported. Paroev said other franchises could operate under the new brand, but the traditional McDonald’s brand would leave the country. Russia’s antitrust agency said the chain could choose to buy its restaurants in Russia within 15 years, although many terms of sale to Govor are still unclear, Reuters reported. “If the opening of McDonald’s in 1990 symbolized the beginning of a new era in Soviet life, an era of greater freedoms, then the current exit of the company represents not only the closure of the company, but also of society as a whole,” said Darra Goldstein. Willcox B. and Harriet M. Adsit, an honorary Russian teacher at Williams College, noted at the time. The new company logo announced on CNN has the “main symbols of the restaurant” depicted on it – what are supposed to be two yellow potato sticks and an orange burger. The green background, the press office told CNN, symbolizes “the quality of the products and services that visitors are accustomed to.” Consumers gathered outside McDonald’s iconic store in central Moscow on Sunday, Reuters reported. Although “Vkusno & Tochka” does not offer some of the most recognizable items on McDonald’s menu – including a Big Mac – customers could buy a double cheeseburger for 129 rubles (about $ 2.30), compared to with about 160 at McDonald’s and a fish burger for 169 rubles, instead of about 190 rubles before. Despite some changes to the menu, the composition of the burgers and McDonald’s equipment remains the same, said Alexander Merkulov, quality manager at the new company. “The taste has remained the same,” said 15-year-old Sergei, a customer, dipped in a chicken burger and french fries. “The cola is different, but there really is no change in the burger.” CNN’s Danielle Wiener-Bronner, Chris Liakos and Anna Chernova contributed to this report.
