McDonald’s announces new developmental licensee for operations in Malaysia, Singapore
KUCHING: McDonald’s Corporation ( McDonald’s) has announced Lionhorn Pte Ltd as the Developmental Licensee ( DL) for its Malaysia and Singapore markets.
Lionhorn is led by Sheik Fahd and Abdulrahman Alireza, who bring 20 years of experience as the DL for the nearly 100 McDonald’s restaurants in the Western and Southern regions of Saudi Arabia.
“This transaction marks another milestone in our Company’s ongoing efforts to identify strategic partners who share our values and vision to accelerate our growth and scale across diverse markets, drive innovation and place us closer to our customers and the communities we serve,” said McDonald’s president and chief executive officer Steve Easterbrook.
The new DL assumed ownership of the McDonald’s business in Malaysia and Singapore on December 1, 2016, which includes a total of 390 restaurants, more than 80 per cent of which were Company- owned. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Under the DL structure, McDonald’s transferred its ownership interest in McDonald’s Malaysia and Singapore and granted a license to the DL to run McDonald’s restaurant operations in these markets.
The DL partner will provide the capital necessary to support and grow the business and will pay an initial franchise fee and an ongoing royalty to McDonald’s.
“We are pleased to welcome Sheik Fahd as the Developmental Licensee for our business in Malaysia and Singapore,” said McDonald’s Asia Foundational Market head Simone Hoyle.
“Sheik Fahd and Abdulrahman Alireza’s experience in running great restaurants will create brand excitement for our customers and new opportunities for our people as these markets continue to grow and develop.”
Leading the day-to- day management of the Malaysia and Singapore markets, respectively, will be local operating partners Azmir Jaafar and Kenneth Chan, both of whom previously held senior leadership positions at McDonald’s and together possess over 40 years of experience.
“Local leadership and market knowledge will be key to driving business success in Malaysia and Singapore,” said Azmir Jaafar, Operating Partner and MD McDonald’s Malaysia.
“We are aligned with the McDonald’s vision to build a modern and progressive brand – and together with our teams, we look forward to creating locally-relevant customer experiences and making a positive impact in these two exciting and diverse markets in Asia.”
This announcement follows a rigorous evaluation and selection process over the past year. As part of its turnaround plan announced in May of 2015, McDonald’s committed to refranchising 4,000 restaurants by the end of 2018 with the long-term goal of becoming 95 per cent franchised.
With this transaction, McDonald’s has now refranchised approximately 1,300 restaurants.