McDonald’s Canada: I’m lovin’ it
September 24, 2022
In 1967, the first Canadian McDonald’s opened in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada.
I’m guessing that most people know who Ray Kroc was, the man who founded McDonald’s hamburger chain in the United States in 1955. But do you know how the chain ended up coming to Canada? Read on…
It was an American man by the name of George Cohon, of Chicago, Ilinois, who founded the Canadian McDonald’s restaurant chain. The first location opened in 1967 as the Western Canada franchise.
In 1968, Cohon, as the Eastern Canada franchisee, opened his store on Oxford Street West in London, Ontario.
Cohon merged the two operations in 1971 and he was responsible for developing the eastern Canada franchises.
Canada’s first McDonald’s Drive-Thru opened in Regina, Saskatchewan in 1977.
As of 2021, McDonald’s Canada had 1,452 stores, which included many restaurant s inside Walmart Canada locations. The company has more than 90,000 Canadian employees.
In 1989, the 600th McDonald’s Canada location was opened at the SkyDome in Toronto, Ontario, with the provision that it sell hot dogs. Sadly, that particular McDonald’s location has since been replaced by office space.
In the 1980s, the McDonald’s chain in Canada grew in leaps and bounds. As well, it was a food sponsor at EXPO ’86 with their floating restaurant nicknamed the “McBarge.”
There are McDonald’s restaurants in every Canadian province and territory with the exception of Nunavut.
In 2021, McDonald’s Canada raised $10,000 for the Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward, by donating 50 cents from every medium, large and extra large coffee purchased at these locations, all day long. In September of that year, McDonald’s Canada observed its third annual McDelivery Night, the night on which McDonald’s orders are delivered directly to the customers’ doors.
Today, 2.5 million guests visit Canada’s 1,194 McDonald’s restaurants.
Most of McDonald’s Canadian restaurants–85%, in fact–are locally owned and operated by independent entrepreneurs.
McDonald’s Canada helps the Canadian economy by creating more than 200,000 jobs and generating almost $4.5 billion in local annual economic activity.
As the largest buyer of ground beef in the Canadian restaurant industry, McDonald’s purchases more than 67 million pounds, annually.
McDonald’s Canada creates more than $610 million annually in taxes through the generation of new jobs and additional purchases of goods and services from other Canadian businesses
Through its $1.5 billion annual expenditures on energy, maintenance, landscaping, operating supplies, wages and benefits, McDonald’s injects approximately $4.2 million into local Canadian economies every day and $130 million in corporate income taxes annually.
P.S. As we are in Canada, McDonald’s slogan, “i’m lovin’ it” is translated to French as “c’est ça que j’m.”
Gloria Sauve
Communications