Who is the Owner of McDonald's?

McDonalds is a fast food chain that is known worldwide. From the legendary golden arches, to the well-known Big Mac, McDonalds has become a constituent of everyday life for millions of people all over the world. It has more than 40,000 stores in more than 100 countries.

But the one question that most people are wondering is: Who is the Owner of McDonald's? Below is everything you need to know about the owner of McDonald's, who founded it, and who runs it today.

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Who is the Owner of McDonald's?

The current owner of McDonald’s is its parent company, which is the McDonald’s Corporation, which is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with a ticker symbol MCD. This implies that McDonalds is owned jointly by its shareholders worldwide.

McDonalds is not however a one-man company. Its CEO and a Board of Directors head the company, and most of its restaurants across the world are franchise based which means that individual franchise owners run most of the McDonalds restaurants.

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Who Was the Founder of McDonald’s?

The history of the foundation of McDonalds is fascinating and it has three main creators:

The two brothers who first opened the first McDonalds restaurant in 1940 in San Bernardino, California, Richard McDonald and Maurice McDonald. They launched the Speedee Service System which was a groundbreaking fast food idea that concentrated on burgers, fries and shakes that were made fast and at low prices.

The McDonald’s website mentions: “Dick and Mac McDonald moved to California to seek opportunities they felt unavailable in New England. Failing in the movie business, they subsequently proved successful in operating drive-in restaurants. In 1948 they took a risk by streamlining their operations and introducing their Speedee Service System featuring 15 cent hamburgers. The restaurant’s success led the brothers to begin franchising their concept—nine becoming operating restaurants. At the San Bernardino location, Dick and Mac McDonald perfected their Speedee Service System featuring a limited menu including fifteen cent hamburgers, shakes and fries. The brothers sold 14 franchises of which 10 became operating restaurants not including their original location in San Bernardino.”

Later on in the years, Ray Kroc became the man who is most commonly attributed with the creation of the McDonalds empire that it is today. Ray Kroc was a milkshake machine salesman who in 1954, went to visit the McDonald restaurant and was impressed by its efficiency. He became the owner of his own franchise of McDonalds in 1955 in Des Plaines, Illinois and in 1961 he purchased the whole company of McDonalds brothers at a price of about 2.7 million dollars.

The McDonald’s website states: “A native Chicagoan, Ray Kroc left high school after his sophomore year to join the World War One Red Cross Ambulance Corps. The war ended before his unit was sent overseas with Ray returning home to earn a living as a musician and later selling paper cups. In 1939, he became the exclusive distributor of the Multimixer (a milkshake mixing machine). He visited the McDonald brothers in 1954 which led to him becoming their franchise agent. In 1955, Kroc opened the first McDonald’s east of the Mississippi river.” 

“[Kroc] opened up the first restaurant for McDonald’s System, Inc., a predecessor of McDonald’s Corp. in Des Plaines, Illinois in April, 1955. McDonald’s acquired the rights to the brother’s company in 1961 for $2.7 million,” it adds. 

The vision of standardisation, scalability and franchising by Ray Kroc transformed a single burger stand into one of the most influential brands in human history. 

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Who is the Current CEO of McDonald's?

Chris Kempczinski is the current CEO of McDonalds Corporation, and he took the position of President and CEO in November 2019. McDonalds under his leadership has been concentrating on:

• Digitization with My McDonald’s app and loyalty programme.

• Diversifying in the delivery services worldwide.

• Enhancing its franchise system in new markets.

Prior to assuming the role of CEO, Chris Kempczinski was the President of McDonalds USA and was instrumental in the growth strategy of the company.

The McDonald’s website mentions: “Chris Kempczinski is Chairman and CEO of McDonald’s Corporation. Under his leadership, Chris has transformed the way McDonald’s engages its customers, cementing McDonald’s position as one of the world’s leading consumer brands. Chris became CEO in 2019 and Chairman of the Board in 2024.”

Today McDonald’s is not owned by an individual. It is an enormous publicly-traded company headed by CEO Chris Kempczinski, and has millions of shareholders, thousands of franchisees, and a history of being founded on the dream of Ray Kroc and the initial innovation of the McDonald brothers.

The McDonalds story is one of the best business stories ever to be told which began with a burger stand on the side of the road in California and now the golden arches gleam in every corner of the world.

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