Tuesday evening, in Moscow, there were still a few customers enjoying a last Big Mac before the temporary closure of one of the approximately 850 McDonald's in Russia.
The American brand has decided to suspend its activity in the country due to Russian military operations in Ukraine, 32 years after the opening of its first restaurant in Moscow.
"Our parents saw the opening of McDonald's in Russia, and we are witnessing its closing", explains a young man in front of one of the main restaurants of the red and yellow sign in the Russian capital.
“I'm glad they're closing!
rejoices a sixty-year-old, who says that neither he "nor (s) a little girl" consume McDonald's.
However, the group will continue to pay its 62,000 employees in the country.
McDonald's had become the symbol of big business in the United States that had so far chosen not to leave Russia, nearly two weeks after the invasion of Ukraine.
The hashtag #BoycottMcDonalds had recently appeared on social media.
"The situation is extraordinarily difficult for a global brand like ours and there are many considerations to take into account," said Chris Kempczinski, the boss of the fast-food chain, in a message published on the McDonald's website. , referring to employees, but also suppliers and customers.
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Russia, where McDonald's directly manages more than 80% of the restaurants bearing its name, represents 9% of the group's turnover and 3% of its operating profit.
It is currently “impossible to predict” when the restaurants will be able to reopen, also indicated Chris Kempczinski: in addition to the humanitarian situation, the group must manage disruptions in its supply chain and other operational problems.
The other large American chains Starbucks, KFC and Pizza Hut in Russia are managed entirely or almost entirely by independent owners under franchise or licence.
Yum!
Brands, the parent company of KFC and Pizza Hut, had nevertheless announced on Monday evening the suspension of all its investments in the country and had committed, like Starbucks,
Already in 2014, some McDonald's in the country had been temporarily closed by the Russian authorities, officially for "sanitary reasons", in times of conflict with Ukraine and tensions with Westerners.