Is This What McDonald's Restaurants In Russia Could Soon Be Called?
What do the phrases "Fun and Tasty," "The Same One," "Just Like That," and "Open Checkout" have in common? These are just three of the names that, per CNN, fast food giant McDonald's has registered with Rospatent, Russia's patent office after the company said would be pulling out of the country for good. The story was first reported by Russian news service RBC, per Insider.
McDonald's decision to exit a market it had been a part of for more than three decades was made months after Moscow gave the order for troops to invade Ukraine. Until the Russian locations were sold in late May, 84% of them were owned by the Golden Arches. Today, they are in the hands of businessman Alexander Govor, who will be running the outlets under a new name. A McDonald's spokesperson has told Russian news service RBC, " We are working on creating a new brand and have already sent applications for the registration of several names. In the future, one of all registered names will be selected." Polling suggests that Russians are big on the name "McDuck" – which is slang for McDonald's, but it is already trademarked in the U.S. and therefore off-limits.
McDonald's is paying dearly to exit the market - in the range of $1.2 billion to $1.4 billion for the write-off.
It's a complicated issue
When Mcdonald's finally decided to close down its Russian restaurants over the decision to invade Ukraine, it had indicated that the shutdowns were temporary. But as the company's chief executive Chris Kempczinski pointed out in an internal message, "This is a complicated issue that's without precedent and with profound consequences... it is impossible to ignore the humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. And it is impossible to imagine the Golden Arches representing the same hope and promise that led us to enter the Russian market 32 years ago," per BBC.
In an assessment of the situation, the BBC's Russia editor Steve Rosenberg says that its decision to close "shows the fast food giant recognizes things will not return to normal and that what the Kremlin calls its 'special military operation' in Ukraine has changed things long term."
The BBC says Mcdonald's is now working to "de-arch" its operations, which will see the restaurants stripped of the McDonald's name and branding, as well as the end of its current menu. It's asked Govor to keep all 62,000 employees on the payroll for now. Per Insider, the Russian outlet RBC reported that because names like "Big Mac," "McFlurry", and "McCafe" are all trademarked, the new restaurant chain cannot use them anymore.
The restaurants are expected to be up and running again in mid-June, and while they may not have the same names, they will likely offer most of the same menu items.