{"id":9923,"date":"2017-01-14T07:45:37","date_gmt":"2017-01-13T18:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/?p=9923"},"modified":"2019-11-22T18:33:56","modified_gmt":"2019-11-22T05:33:56","slug":"the-continuing-decline-of-mcdonalds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/wapf\/the-continuing-decline-of-mcdonalds\/","title":{"rendered":"The Continuing Decline of McDonald\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 class=\"post-title single\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>The Continuing Decline of McDonald\u2019s<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/nif_mcdonalds.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21324\" src=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/nif_mcdonalds.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/nif_mcdonalds.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/nif_mcdonalds-300x120.jpg 300w\" alt=\"\" width=\"658\" height=\"263\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<em>by James Corbett<br \/>\n<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Long-time Corbett Reporteers might recall my 2015 video, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/celebrate-mcdonalds-is-dying\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Celebrate! McDonald\u2019s is Dying!<\/a>\u201d where I detailed the many, many woes the fast \u201cfood\u201d giant was dealing with at the time, including:<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<li>The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/SB1043077388338763904\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first quarterly loss<\/a> in the firm\u2019s 38 years as a publicly traded company ($343.8 million).<\/li>\n<li>Its <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japantimes.co.jp\/news\/2015\/02\/05\/business\/corporate-business\/mcdonalds-japan-posts-%C2%A522-billion-loss-food-woes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first full-year loss<\/a> ($186 million) in Japan in 11 years.<\/li>\n<li>A <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/money\/business\/2014\/10\/21\/mcdonalds-fast-food-restaurants-earnings\/17652697\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">58 cent per share drop<\/a> on the back of a global comparable sales drop of 3.3%.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Since then, McCancer\u2019s has been undergoing a sweeping \u201crestructuring\u201d that has seen many layers of lipstick slapped on their factory-farmed pig. This restructuring includes not only cosmetic changes (\u201cAll-day breakfasts and new value menus for everyone!\u201d) but behind-the-scenes efforts to trim $500 million from the company\u2019s operating expenses, including <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nrn.com\/workforce\/mcdonald-s-offers-buyouts-cost-cutting-continues\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">buyouts and layoffs<\/a> at company headquarters and the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.marketwatch.com\/story\/mcdonalds-to-book-130-million-restructuring-charge-2016-10-13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">re-franchising of 4,000 corporate \u201crestaurants.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">The global giant\u2019s influential PR machine has used sleight-of-hand and other tricks to make this restructuring look like a smash success. They used their cheerleaders at the <em>Wall Street Journal<\/em> to hype \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/mcdonalds-profit-climbs-above-expectations-1461327646\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">stronger-than-expected<\/a>\u201d profit and sales figures and their boosters at <em>US News &amp; World Report<\/em> to hype some <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/articles\/2016-01-25\/mcdonalds-looking-golden-after-latest-plan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">highly-selective earnings comparisons<\/a> suggesting that this \u201cturnaround\u201d is, to use the WSJ\u2019s phrase, \u201csustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">But one doesn\u2019t have to scratch too hard to reveal the rusty reality beneath this PR paint job.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdonalds-stock-decline.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-21326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdonalds-stock-decline-300x102.png\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdonalds-stock-decline-300x102.png 300w, https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdonalds-stock-decline.png 735w\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"102\" \/><\/a>McPinkslime\u2019s might have \u201cbeat expectations\u201d for sales and profits, but beating diminished expectations is hardly a sign of booming business. Just look at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/money\/2016\/10\/21\/mcdonalds-third-quarter-earnings\/92507334\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">nuts and bolts<\/a> of the Q3 2016 earnings report: Year-on-year revenue is down 2.9% and net income is down 2.6%. And keep in mind, those numbers are in comparison to the already-terrible 2015 figures.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">And that \u201cre-franchising\u201d operation? It cost <a href=\"http:\/\/www.marketwatch.com\/story\/mcdonalds-to-book-130-million-restructuring-charge-2016-10-13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">$130 million in pre-tax charges<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">But don\u2019t worry, everyone, they \u201cbeat expectations!\u201d Pay no attention to the hemorrhaging corporation behind the curtain!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">And now the latest sign of McDonteat\u2019s global retreat (via Corbett Report member \u201cBuddhaForce\u201d): \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/money.cnn.com\/2017\/01\/09\/investing\/mcdonalds-china-business-citic-carlyle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">McDonald\u2019s gives up control of its China business in $2 billion deal<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">The story is fascinating enough in its own right, what with\u00a0McDonteats throwing in the corporate towel on the largest and fastest-growing consumer market in the world. But the devil is, as always, in the details. Who is purchasing the majority stake in the company\u2019s mainland operations? None other than The Carlyle Group and CITIC Group.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">The Carlyle Group\u2019s name will likely ring a bell as one of the largest <del>swamp pits<\/del> \u201cprivate equity firms\u201d in the world, and one with its fingers in many a pie, including, of course, <a href=\"http:\/\/911blogger.com\/news\/2009-12-12\/carlyle-kissinger-saic-and-halliburton-911-convergence\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">9\/11<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">CITIC Group, meanwhile, will be familiar to The Corbett Report faithful as a key player in \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/episode-297-china-and-the-new-world-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">China and the New World Order<\/a>,\u201d a Chinese state-owned investment company that helped serve as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2014-06-02\/citic-once-courting-rockefeller-to-go-global-in-hong-kong\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rockefeller-Kissinger nexus<\/a> between the Deng Xiaoping-era \u201ccapitalist roaders\u201d and their western finance oligarch <a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/deal-with-the-devil-how-the-global-elite-re-colonized-china\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">recolonizers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">That these two cesspools are converging on the giant turd of American fast food is fitting enough. The McDonaldization of China is proceeding apace, and the usual crew are there to profit from it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdeath.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-21327\" src=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdeath-300x151.jpeg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdeath-300x151.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/mcdeath.jpeg 530w\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"151\" \/><\/a>But as to what this story says about the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/business\/2016\/oct\/16\/mcdonalds-hasnt-transformed-profits-ronald-clown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">continuing decline of the once-mighty golden arches<\/a>, there are two main takeaways to the story, one depressing and one positive.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">On the depressing front, there is a simple reason for the across-the-board slowdown in fast food sales in recent years (despite the predictable attempts to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/american-fast-food-sales-fall-2016-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">overcomplicate the problem in clickbait-y listicle format<\/a>). For once, the <em>Wall Street Journal<\/em> gets it right: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/dining-out-falls-victim-to-economy-1466983103\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">It\u2019s the economy, stupid<\/a>. What greater rebuke to the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.activistpost.com\/2017\/01\/false-economic-recovery-narrative-will-die-2017.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">easily-disprovable economic \u201crecovery\u201d nonsense<\/a> of the Obama years could be possible than pointing out the simple fact that people are too worried about their economic future to splurge on a $5 value meal?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">But on a positive note, we can take McFatfood\u2019s woes as a sign that, try as they might with their considerable propaganda resources, the corporate chieftains can\u2019t put their egg McMuffin back together again. People are fed up with fast food. And although some, concerned with cost, are turning to eating at home as the cheaper option, others are more concerned with what\u2019s in their food, where it\u2019s sourced from, how it\u2019s being prepared and who is being paid for it. Who wants instant, nutritionless, food-like substitute rolled up in plastic and slapped down on a tray by surly, overworked servers (or, increasingly, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.recode.net\/2016\/12\/9\/13903264\/trump-robots-fast-food-workers-puzder-labor\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">robots<\/a>) anyway?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For those interested in how they can take part in the <em>real<\/em> food revolution that will render the McFastfood economy obsolete, may I humbly offer <a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/episode-299-solutions-guerrilla-gardening\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">this podcast on guerrilla gardening<\/a>? <em>Bon app\u00e9tit<\/em>!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.corbettreport.com\/the-continuing-decline-of-mcdonalds\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>FROM JAMES CORBETT<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Continuing Decline of McDonald\u2019s by James Corbett Long-time Corbett Reporteers might recall my 2015 video, \u201cCelebrate! McDonald\u2019s is Dying!\u201d where I detailed the many, many woes the fast \u201cfood\u201d giant was dealing with at the time, including: The first quarterly loss in the firm\u2019s 38 years as a publicly traded company ($343.8 million). Its [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[54,17,16],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10372,"url":"https:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/wapf\/violation-of-consent-fluoridation-and-forced-medication\/","url_meta":{"origin":9923,"position":0},"title":"Violation of Consent: James Corbett on Forced Fluoridation","date":"December 15, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Fluoride - The forced drugging of society As the scientific evidence of the dangers of water fluoridation continues to mount, there is no longer any room for doubt: those who deny that adding hydrofluorosilicic acid to the water supply is in fact causing untold medical harm are simply ignorant of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;CONSPIRACIES&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/421341_201097660042721_1537554057_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":20508,"url":"https:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/wapf\/frot-coronahoax-resources\/","url_meta":{"origin":9923,"position":1},"title":"FROT CORONAHOAX RESOURCES","date":"August 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Much as I'd like to get carried away and do a great big web page with hundreds of links, pimped out with pictures and memes and video previews, right now we need a quick way to share content that can be easily copied and pasted across different platforms and front\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;CORONAVIRUS&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/download-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11825,"url":"https:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/steemit\/does-anyone-really-watch-videos\/","url_meta":{"origin":9923,"position":2},"title":"DOES ANYONE REALLY WATCH VIDEOS","date":"October 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"DOES ANYONE REALLY WATCH VIDEOS ON STEEMIT? 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