 | |
 McDonald's head office in Toronto | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Restaurant |
| Genre | Fast food |
| Founded | Richmond, British Columbia, Canada (1967) |
| Founder | George Cohon |
| Headquarters | 1 McDonald's Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Number of locations | 1,466 (2023) |
| Area served | Canada |
| Key people | Michèle Boudria, President Jacques Mignault, Chief Operating Officer |
| Services | Master franchise |
| Number of employees | 90,000+ (2022) |
| Parent | McDonald's Corporation |
| Website | mcdonalds.ca |
McDonald's Restaurants of Canada, Limited (French: Les Restaurants McDonald's du Canada Limitée) is the Canadian master franchise of the fast-food restaurant chain McDonald's, owned by the American parent McDonald's Corporation. One of Canada's largest fast-food restaurant chains, the franchise sells food items – including hamburgers, chicken, French fries and soft drinks – all across the country. McDonald's is known for its high fat and calorie foods. McDonald's was Canada's largest food-service operator before being overtaken by Tim Hortons in 2005.
The logo of McDonald's in Canada can be identified by the red maple leaf on the company's golden arches. The slogans used in Canada are i'm lovin' it in English and c'est ça que j'm in French. McDonald's Canadian operations are headquartered in the North York area of Toronto, Ontario. The current president and CEO of McDonald's in Canada is Michèle Boudria. As of 2022, McDonald's Canada had 1,462 stores (including restaurants inside many Walmart Canada locations) in Canada, and more than 90,000 Canadian employees.
History
Chicago-born George Cohon founded the company. The first store opened in 1967 in Richmond, British Columbia as the Western Canadian franchisee and operated with the U.S. operations. Cohon was the Eastern Canadian franchise and opened his store in 1968 on Oxford Street West in London, Ontario. In 1971, Cohon merged the two operations to one national operation. Cohon was responsible for developing the eastern Canadian franchises.
McDonalds Canada was a food sponsor at EXPO 86 with their floating restaurant nicknamed the McBarge.
In 1989, McDonald's was awarded the concessionary rights to the newly built SkyDome in Toronto. One of the requirements was to sell hotdogs, resulting in the first time McDonald's sold the product. Part of the stadium also included the largest McDonald's in Canada. The now closed restaurant was located at the base of the CN Tower. In 1993, the franchise briefly sold hot dogs outside the venue at reduced prices and in unlabelled carts, which was criticized by the other 25 hot dog vendors. The first PlayPlace opened in Niagara Falls, Ontario in 1995.
The flagship location opened in 2013 near the Yonge-Dundas Square in Toronto. Poutine was launched as a menu item nationally in 2013 (it was previously available only in Quebec). In 2015, the company noted reduced customer traffic. That same year, salads were launched, with sodium and fat content that were comparable to other menu items. Salads were then discontinued during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. In 2020, McDonald's partnered with Snapchat, with some job applicants sending 30-second videos through the platform. In 2021, locations in Ontario attached COVID-19 vaccine flyers to takeout orders.
Scandals
McDonald's Canada was criticized for its use of the Temporary Foreign Workers Program. These workers could be paid less than other employees, which is attractive to employers wishing to cut costs. Three of its franchises in Victoria, British Columbia were federally investigated for their use of the program. McDonald's Canada also stated that it would conduct a review. In a conference call to the franchisees about the program, McDonald's Canada CEO John Betts stated: "the fact of the matter is we are a big bad company corporate you know, bad company. And these poor maligned employees, are who they are ... This has been an attack on our brand ... This is an attack on our people. It's bullshit." These locations had their permits for the program suspended during the investigation.
On May 1, 2023, a McDonald's franchise in Ottawa, referred to as the Rideau McDonald's due to its location at 99 Rideau, was closed indefinitely after the franchise owners chose to not renew their lease. The Rideau McDonald's had been dubbed as the "World's Worst McDonald's" by the Toronto Star due to its reputation of being a "flashpoint for crime". In April 2019, Ottawa Police Chief, Charles Bordeleau, wrote a letter to McDonald's Canada CEO, stating that "Officers of the Ottawa Police Service attend this location on a daily basis to address issues including vagrancy, liquor licence violations, illicit drug use, and incidents of violence," and that he believed the 99 Rideau location was "breaching your standards of operation". In response, McDonald's Canada reduced the restaurants hours from 24 hours to 6 am to 10 pm. In January 2023, the Rideau McDonald's franchise owners stated that they were not renewing their lease and the restaurant would close. In response to the closure, a group of University of Ottawa students organized a fundraiser and food drive referred to as the Rideau McDonald's Farewell March on March 19, 2023. The Farewell March had over 200 attendees and raised over $1,900 for local charities such as Operation Come Home.
See also
References
- "Restaurants by Market 2023.xlsx - Restaurants by Market 2023.pdf" (PDF). Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- "Our History - McDonalds Canada". Retrieved August 7, 2022.
- "Wendy's confirms Tim Hortons IPO by March". Ottawa Business Journal. 2005-12-01. Archived from the original on 2006-06-29.
- "Our History". McDonald's Canada. Retrieved 2017-08-12.
- William-Ross, Lindsay (June 21, 2017). "McDonald's re-opens first Canadian on location in Richmond with a modern rebuild and fun look back to 1967". Daily Hive. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
- Kergin, Brendan. "New short doc revisits aging McBarge, the floating McDonald's of Expo 86 (VIDEO)". Vancouver Is Awesome. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
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- ^ "McDonald's accused of favouring foreign workers". CBC. 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
- Lundy, Matt. "How Canada became a hotbed for low-wage foreign labour". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
- "McDonald's Canada CEO calls foreign worker controversy 'bullshit'". CBC. 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
- Mas, Susana. "Temporary Foreign Worker Program sanctions target 3 employers". CBC News. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
- ^ Writer, Amy Dempsey Senior (2023-05-02). "Midnight brawls, a baby raccoon and a police chief's letter: How the 'World's Worst McDonald's' became a symbol of downtown decay". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-03-16.
- "Marchers mourn end of a McEra as notorious Ottawa McDonald's will soon be McGone-ald's". Ottawa. 2023-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-16.
- ^ Kupfer, Matthew (April 18, 2019). "Rideau Street McDonald's reduces hours due to security concerns". Canadian Broadcasting Company.
- Anand, Avanthika (March 19, 2023). "Marchers bid farewell to storied, controversial Rideau Street McDonald's". Canadian Broadcasting Company. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
- "Marchers mourn end of a McEra as notorious Ottawa McDonald's will soon be McGone-ald's". Ottawa. 2023-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-16.
- "Ottawa residents march to bid farewell to Rideau Street McDonald's". ottawa.citynews.ca. Retrieved 2024-03-16.