McDonald’s Dilemma: The battle forfast food market in China

Abstract

The case provided a short review how McDonald’s had undertaken foreign expansion into China in the early 1990s when it was facing saturation in its huge home market, United States. For the first time since 1990, McDonald’s achieved the highest number of stores of 200 new restaurants in 2011.
Although McDonald’s took 19 years to open a total of 1,400 stores in China, the efficient and successful U.S business model of McDonald’s proven effective in other markets but still considered not good enough for the Chinese market. The case initially generates discussion on the need for
seeking reliable partners, creating sustainable relationships within its supply chain and the Chinese government in the challenging market conditions. Through trial and error, developing a strong local management team, winning over the Chinese consumers and evaluating existing business models
have to be considered.