McDonald's

Get out what you put in

Although your work will be rewarding both financially and personally, don’t think of McDonald’s franchise as a licence to print money. The rewards are certainly there, but they’re for the earning, not the taking. And if you’re looking for an investment where you can sit back and not be involved, this isn’t for you. We’re not trying to put you off – we just want you to be aware of some of the realities before you go further.

Your Skills

Like we said, a career as a McDonald’s franchisee is not by any means for everyone. Equally, we don’t accept just anyone either. Ideally, you’ll already have a successful business or career and will have demonstrated significant team leadership.

It should come as no surprise then, that our selection process is rigorous. We look for individuals with:

• High personal integrity
• High standards of people management and communication
• Abilitiy to display financial acumen
• Strong leadership qualities
• The personality to be an excellent ambassador for McDonald’s

Hands-on management

Running a McDonald’s franchise means running it. The role would vary from working in the restaurant and preparing the food to dealing with marketing critical business decisions. It is emphatically hands-on. You will be leading your team and ensuring that at all times, the customers visiting your restaurant enjoy the highest standards on each and every visit.

Active in the community

And it doesn’t end there. We encourage all of our franchisees to be active in teh community. Usually, they support community programmes like local junior football teams or issues relating to the environment. So you can see, it’s as much about earning respect within and outside your restaurant as it is about earning money.

The approval process

After several interviews, if we’re both sure that a McDonald’s franchise is right for you, you’ll embark on your training programme which typically takes nine months. This involves visiting and working in several restaurants as well as classroom-based tuition. The training is excellent, but you’ll have to support yourself throughout that period, as well as provide a refundable £5,000 training deposit.

There’s more to running a McDonald’s franchise than serving burgers and French fries – much more. You’ll need a remarkable aptitude for connecting and communicating with people. You’ll be completely committed for at least 20 years, with no other business interests. And we only offer franchises to individuals although many of our franchisees run their businesses as husband-and-wife teams.

Meet us at an Open Day

One of the best ways to learn more about being a franchisee is to come and talk to us. We host Open Days and attend other events all over the country, so please find one near you, come along and see what it’s all about.

What does it cost?

As a guide, the cost of a restaurant typically ranges from £125,000 to £325,000. You will need to provide at least 25% of the value as unencumbered funds, the remaining 75% can be funded through a bank loan with favourable funding terms.

There’s also a one-off franchise fee of £30,000 and a training deposit of £5,000 which is refunded when you complete your training.

There are also ongoing fees:

• Monthly rent on the premises, based on sales and profitability (usually ranging from 10% to 15%)
• Service Fee for the use of the McDonald’s system – 5% of sales
• Contribution to the national marketing spend, currently 4.5%

And the returns?

Cashflow (before debt repayment) typically ranges from £95,000 to £200,000 per year for each restaurant but this isn’t guaranteed: it could be more, it could be less.

We’re full members of the British Franchise Association

The British Franchise Association (BFA) is the voluntary self regulating governing body for franchising.

For more information click here!