Have you noticed if there's a difference between the area/city/area it's located? I've noticed that if it's by a motorway it's plane and doesn't do much decoration wise. There's also the café ones in city centers and streetssnd in the less populated they look like the American ones. In Denmark, the arches makes up a seagull and we call them "Restaurant The Golden Seagull". 😅
Mc Donald's green??? Live in the Netherlands, wood design yes but never ever saw a green yellow mc Donald's sign. Always saw it red and yellow.....until I googled it and discovered that in my own hometown they all are suddenly green and yellow ...and we have four of them. I have no idea when this happened😅. Either I really don't pay attention to my surroundings or...and I like to think that is the reason ...I started eating healthier and didn't go there that often...:-)
I was going to comment that in Norway all McDonalds are red. Then I googled pictures of them. And they're all green!!! When did this happen? I have a McDonalds less than 2 km from me and never noticed.
In Finland, at least what I found by comparing older Google Streetview pictures, seems that the color changed sometime around the year 2010 and most restaurant buildings were also renovated then. Most McDonalds locations in Finland still have the red color in the tall golden arches poles, though (as mentioned in the video).
Am wondering this myself ... and am not even a Honda fan 😂. I know of why Exxon is US only (Esso around the world) but not why honda is US=blue vs world =red
not really. everythink other than car is red in the usa. then you have to consider that honda is the largest engine manufacture or the world and the best sold product is the honda cup (tiny motorcycle). i actually would like be able to buy one of those in europe, that is not that styliesed versions we get but actually usefull.
Another interesting distinction is that they use different symbols for their cars and motorcycles. The color red is still used in their motorcycle logo.
I think I might actually have to add something. The green design change might actually come from even earlier than 2009. Because my local McDonalds in Hillerød, Denmark, opened in early 2008, and was the first new McDonalds in Denmark after several years of stagnation, and from the very start had the green branding, new logo, and design elements that are now commonplace across Europe. At the time McDonalds was also getting a lot of public backlash in Denmark as an increased public awareness was put on health and obesity, which hit McDonalds especially hard, making them take a hard diversion into appearing as a healthier food option with stuff like greens and veggies, salads, carrots, juice, and spring water coming onto the menu alongside a corporate rebrand from Red to Green. Interestingly though we didn't get McCafé until very recently. Since this seems to be the earliest I could find on the McDonalds rebrand, it actually makes me wonder if my very local one might have been the guinea pig for the whole Europe-wide transformation of McDonalds. Your point on McDonalds being incredibly effective at tailoring marketing to a local market is also very much on point. Here in Denmark they have some very peculiar ads. Like for getting young adults to start work there. McDonalds actually has a program here where a job in a McDonalds restaurant for a few years can actually give a diploma which matches a formal education in the hospitality and restaurant schools. They've also had ads showing some of the store managers, trying to break myths of working at or running a McDonalds restaurant, and more recently they've had ads claiming how sustainable they are, like using frying oil for their french fries that could be reused as biodiesel, or showing the quality and nurture that the potatoes for their fries come from.
My uncle works pretty high in McDonnald's - so at least I can confirm that often 1-2 locations are chosen to be "test beds" for concept which if successful is adopted around 1-2 years later in the rest of the region. Also US has a location where they also try different stuff (I think they have 4 McDonnald's in vicinity, everyone has it's own menu and style.
The one in Frederiksberg where I live has changed looks and strategy way too much. It's always filled to the rim and Wolt takes up every cm of the place. I can't stand it.
McDonald's being a great place to work in Denmark (one of the best work places in the country) was to try and save themselves. McDonald's had terrible conditions and multiple unions were going to boycott them (including some in the transportation industry), so they did a 180... because they'd like to stay in business. It's kind of funny how they went to be one of the best places to work, from being one of the absolute worst.
A correction: Nando is not an american brand but a South African brand, and their food is based on Portuguese Pe-Ri Pe-Ri chicken. The cockerel you see in the brand, is actually based on the Galo de Barcelos, a symbol of Portugal. Red is also the color of our flag, so... yeah... the reason why they have red in the brand isn't just because of marketing but beacause their food being based on Portuguese cuisine.
In Italy the MacDonald's burgers are different. The quality of the meat is higher than in the USA and in the last years they introduced some burgers with high quality "Chianina" meat and other Italian ingredients, like Asiago cheese, etc. The problem is that often you will spend as much money as in the restaurant next door...😂
I agree, like why eating at mcdo while you can get better for the same price. Yet, there is something about McDo that I like. I can sit there unbothered for an hour, no waiter is going to talk to me and the food is always the same. I don't need to go there between 12-13 or 19-21. That's why when I have a really bad day and I need to be alone I would go to Mcdo. It quites me down. Although, it happens to me maybe twice or max three times a year. But I appreciate anyways.
I had spaghetti at an American McDonald's decades ago while vacationing there. I don't think it would have went over well with Italians as it was awful
Interesting that it's mentioned that blue is 'poison' and not something associated with food. In Israel there's blue McDonald's restaurants, which indicate Kosher.
@@DonHavjuanWell, speaking of the classic Hamburger, it is without cheese anyway. I suppose they'll just offer the regular menu, but slightly adapted for it being actually kosher. Which also means no cheese on the burger. In India, they've for example replaced any beef with chicken to adapt for this market.
@@DonHavjuanYes, Obviously Cheeseburgers are not kosher ... therefore they are, of course, not sold in kosher restaurants. Instead, the kosher restaurants sell Burgers without cheese (or any other milk products).
I'm not a big fan of the hole colour theory, there is something about it on a small scale if you isolate the colour but when you put it together with all the other things that goes into a, in this case, successful restaurant. They style and lighting inside the restaurant is a lot more important then the colours themselves. Blue in nature often means poison when talking food but many birds have blue on them as mating colours, so blue in nature is also a beautiful colour. So experts take that knowledge and then translate it to our modern world, and that gives that if you ask an designer to design your logo, they might not use blue for a restaurant because they been told in design school that food and blue is a no go, but in the real world, the costumer don't care, they want a logo that catches you from the street and then the cleanliness and atmosphere of the restaurant itself takes over, until the food is served and then our decision to come back lies mainly on taste vs price the atmosphere. I will bet money 9n the fact that logo colour does not count at all for repeat visits. The price and taste of the food is also more important then if the logo is red or green. And in this case with mcdonalds, they are such an established fast food chain that they could change their colour to dull brown and still sell the same amount of food I guess 😂
Very informative. In the UK we actually seem to have a 3-colour system. On the roads they are still red/yellow. In suburban areas they are moving to green/brown. But in the most sophisticated city centre areas, they are black. But as you say, the food is still presented in red packaging, which seems odd. Interesting that unlike most fast food chains they are adaptable without apparently diluting the brand. I'm not a fan of the company, but it seems that the devil has all the best tunes. As for health, in Europe the veggie and vegan menu is far more extensive than in the US, where new offerings are only being tested and haven't yet been rolled out nationally.
The vegan options: I wish that was the case in all countries, but for some reason Denmark only has that gnarly veggie quinoa-patty that isn’t even vegan 😭 Germany has the better options there. Even better is Max in Sweden!!
@@annaselbdritt7916 In the UK, vegans are becoming a significant percentage of the market. As a result, every bookshop has a vegan section, and all the main fast food chains have added some vegan options. McDonald's offer 12 vegan options, with 8 being available in all outlets.
It's because the packaging is mass-produced, while the buildings themselves can be easily done in the color that is most fitting. It's not really odd. Besides, Europeans still think of McDonald's as red and yellow, even if the buildings might be using cozier colors like dark green or even black. So the packaging makes sense.
In my country Philippines, McDonald's take their CSR towards the environment seriously. The newer branches, built from 2022, have solar panels, bike lanes (in some branches), and concrete pavers infused with mixed plastic waste to minimize plastic waste in the waters.
In Canada McDonald's colours are brown and grey, with red and yellow. Like a depressed adult longing for their childhood. Also our McD's food went from being standard takeout, then adding salads, wraps and delicious toasted deli sandwiches and premium burgers...then back to standard garbage again. Canada is so weird.
In Poland there was a short period when McDonalds were in both red and green versions. The green version had heavy focus on ecology and sustainability (for example they asked you to turn off engine while waiting in drive thru). This shows there were some procedures tested at this period ;)
Packaging at US McDonald's has changed since I first worked there as a teenager many decades ago. While the burger boxes were less sustainable then (Styrofoam), the cups were waxed paper instead of the plastic that you find today. While the cutlery was always plastic, I remember when it wasn't presented wrapped in yet more plastic. It really bothers me to throw away these plastic cups so I find myself taking them home and finding ways to reuse them until I can find a way to recycle them. Unfortunately for me, it seems unclear to me whether my local recycling program will accept these cups or not.
Plastic recycling is a basket case, and sometimes literally a dumpster fire. Why are non-recyclable polymers still a thing and why are they still mixing recyclable and non-recyclable polymers in the same package?
The best is compostable utinsels and cups, in cities that have central composting and ban single-use plastics, as a few US cities have done. European wooden spoons are a similar thing (and not so hi-tech).
@@sluggo206 Fun fact: Compostable utensils and cups are not particularly much better. If it ends up in a landfill, it ends up the same as everything else. There are a LOT of cities around the world that wants to be "sustainable" but in the end ends up worse than they started.
Many upscale suburbs demanded changes decades ago. They would not allow bright garish colors on the exteriors of buildings, so many companies had to modify and tone down in those wealthier areas. Also a few years ago McDonald's made a strong move to try to rebrand as a coffee shop on top of fast food. McDonald's went with the McCafe promo by pushing coffee drinks and pastries. Many areas, especially the franchisees, backed off of that to a minimum but the company as a whole is still pushing to compete with Starbucks on that front. So you were very close with that comparison to Starbucks colors.
Some time ago I heard something about McCafé being more profitable than the whole burger/fries part of McDonald’s, tbh it makes sense they probably have a much better profit margins with their McCafé products
@@agme8045 There's a joke that McDonalds is not really a hamburger restaurant but a french-fries restaurant because it gets more profit on the fries. Or maybe it's a soft-drink restaurant because it gets even more profit on those. Or it's a real-estate company holding strategic land parcels, and the restaurants are just a holding pattern until it can sell the parcels for top dollar.
Packaging of the fries is red in Europe because it has become an iconic piece of design. Just like the pack of Marlboro cigarettes or the can of Campbell soup.
The list of ingredients of fries in american McDonalds are different then those in Europe. UK: Fries Ingredients: Potatoes, Non-Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (Rapeseed), Dextrose (predominantly added at beginning of the potato season). Prepared in the restaurants using a non-hydrogenated vegetable oil. Salt is added after cooking. USA: French Fries Ingredients: Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Natural Beef Flavor [wheat And Milk Derivatives]*), Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate (maintain Color), Salt. *natural Beef Flavor Contains Hydrolyzed Wheat And Hydrolyzed Milk As Starting Ingredients. Contains: Wheat, Milk. Datas from McDonald sites
American living in the UK. The eat in packaging is definitely more sustainable in Europe as a whole, but last year I went to McDonald's in Paris and it was far and away the winner. Between a big Mac meal and a happy meal the only packaging was apple slices bag, a wrapper for the big Mac, and a small cardboard box for the toy. Everything else was reusable hard plastic dishes. Made me wonder why we package everything to go sit down and open it.
2:02 my grandpa was part of the team responsible for this specific roof shape (not the wooden slats tho, that was after his time, just the shape), it's a little sad to see his work disappearing
The change of target group seems to be supported by the fact that there is no dedicated room for children birthday parties anymore in McDonalds (at least in Poland).
Same in the US. They removed most of the kid friendly things like playgrounds, and stopped doing birthday parties when my kids were little. Since I don't like their food, I pretty much stopped going there altogether because of that.
@@izimsiin some McDonald’s where I’m from, there used to be a separate section of the restaurant for families with young kids, next to the ball pit, slides, etc. And for birthdays parties they would go in that section. I imagine they did it that way to isolate the noise from the rest of the restaurant.
You are aware that McDonald's actually started out as a teen focused concept, right? It was just that the teens grew up, had kids, and went to McDonald's and they switched... and now the pendulum is going back.
McD had salads on their menu in the US a few years ago, they just removed it recently. Those salads were amazing, tastier than in Europe and also bigger portion. I like the red, traditional McD design more though...
I remember the first McDonald's with a McDrive in "Huis ter Heide" in the Netherlands in 1987. It was close to a military base where US military were present at Soesterberg. We drove an hour just to order at the window. Fascinating....😂
been to europe 3 times and it never crossed my mind to take coffee-flavoured desserts at starbucks or eat at the de-glorified mcdonalds ..There is just so many delicious food to even consider that a choice.
I feel the same traveling. I want to try the local stuff and where people in the city goes to eat. I hardly eat fast food because I live in Copenhagen and there's a lot of other choices.
@@charisma-hornum-fries True , but almost every Country in Europe has a McDonalds,KFC,Subway, Dominos and more. I agree that our local Food can be the better choice but sometimes it is also nice to grab a Burger at Late Night after Work
As an American, one thing I always try to impress on people from other countries is exactly how much capitalism has infiltrated our day-to-day life. A lot of people would love to get rid of plastics, but the various chemical companies and producers won't have it. We also have briber...I mean lobbying.
Yes I'm European and don't understand the strong anti americanism in Europe, because (American) citizens can't really do things differently, the system is vicious
@@charisma-hornum-fries 1- Why are you talking to me as if I was stupid ? Insulting people and asking them things at the same time, weird way to do things... 2- Why do you want to know? 3- Where are you ?
@@charisma-hornum-fries Being polite is better than treat people as if they are stupid. I'm tired of people like that, more of that. No I can't, you don't HAVE TO KNOW, or tell me what. The arrogance of the behaviour is incredible. Incredible! PS: with this HIGH LEVEL of disrespect, be glad that I'm answering. You don't deserve it. PS2: Norway is a beautiful country, don't know well but I'll go one day!
@@charisma-hornum-fries I get it. Europe is Europe. I am right. And yes, ideas and conviction are different, depending in where you are. OF COURSE. But, til now... I don't understand why you can't realize your rudeness (I assume you don't, I prefer that). Unbelievable.
What was not mentioned at all in the video is food quality (yes, you touched on the salads and vegetales on the burgers). All modern (ie most, since corporate heavily subsidises this) McD stores make food "made to order". Meaning, nobody will make food unless it is ordered. There is no pile of bigmacs, because "hey somebody will probably order them in the next minutes". If its not ordered, it's not made, period. This includes everything, even fries if I remember correctly. Coffee is one of the best you can find, food quality is very good. Literally night and day.
@@kricku slow yes, sure and of course. But arguably it tastes much better. What is completely lost on me is value for money. The prices are crazy and you can almost get a proper burger from a burger joint for the prices.
@@Saliamongo That's capitalism at work, the concept of enshittification specifically (good one to read up on, if you haven't heard of the term 'enshittification' before). First, offer very low prices to establish yourself in a market and attract customers. Build rapport with those customers so they'll want to keep coming back. Then once you have a somewhat loyal userbase and little to no competition to undercut your prices, start driving up the prices to where most people will still pay. End result is much more revenue, and thus more profit. Which is always the ultimate goal of a big commercial company, especially if its traded on the stock market and has a board of stock holders. All stock holders care about is earning back as much money as possible on their investment.
In the Netherlands I still have to get used to McDonald's being yellow-green instead of yellow-red. As a kid I vividly remember the logos were red, and how the interiors had shiny tiles and bright saturated colors and lighting (and the Happy Meal toys were actually fun!). The restaurants now are nothing like they were 15 to 20 years ago. As a grown up, I do like the modern and unsaturated interiors with wood and stone themes, and I mainly just drop by to get a fresh cappuccino from the McCafé counter. What I find great is that they are reliable in what you get: open till late, free toilet, good parking, freshly made coffee, air conditioning, and accessible through many locations. Working on the road, it is a solid choice to spend the break.
I'm US, but live in Sweden. We were Stateside last December. I was amazed at the quality difference between here and Stateside. The menu choices Stateside were far less and quality much poorer. It was the same in every McDonald's we visited.
Interesting video! I figured it was some sort of 'eco' rebranding a few years ago myself, along with the laws that came into effect in the EU/UK over single use plastics. One thing that shocked me which you also pick up in this video. After the single use plastics laws came into effect and then covid happened, I took a trip to the US after the lockdowns. In a single day I'd used more plastic than I do in an entire week in the UK, it really shocked me how little the average person seemed to care about the enviroment (I actually posted about this on a video when I got back and had a boat load of abuse telling me how I was wrong or to prove it). I'm surprised they don't offer at least one salad though in the US.
Packaging goes even further in France, because of regulations fast foods are required to serve food in reusable packaging and avoid cardboard when eating on site. So your fries come in a rigid plastic cup, so does your soda and ice cream, only burgers are allowed to be packaged in paper.
As someone who worked at a McDonald's for... quite awhile, this is fascinating. It's interesting that you say that compared to the States, McDonald's in Europe look modern, and not like a fast food restaurant anymore. The reason that's interesting is because McDonald's in the US underwent a change TO its current look within the last couple of decades, with the objective of looking more modern, more cozy, more like a place you want to relax and spend time at. Every McDonald's you showed has the "new" "modern" design. I've noticed on the Internet complaints about fast food places all looking the same now, how they're all boring, minimalist, an corporate looking. People have a lot of nostalgia for fun, cartoonish look of McDonald's from their childhood.
i used to miss it when the change was recent. But thinking about it a decade later, I don't think i'd like to eat a burger in the stink of kid's feet from the playroom in the restaurant.
A lot of complaints, yet they keep coming back. The thing is, McDonald's started as a restaurant for teens... Then the teens grew up, and needed a place to feed their kids, McDonald's became a family restaurant which McDonald's embraced, but then those kids grew up, and it's back to a teen restaurant, and you are seeing a shift towards it becoming a family restaurant again.
The European Union's Audiovisual Media Services Directive has led to the cessation of advertising junk food to children. As a result, McDonald's can no longer depend on children as a primary customer base and must adapt its marketing strategies to appeal to more health-conscious adults.
McDonald's in NYC & California went from paper cups 🥤 & banning plastic straws & using paper straws, then droped paper cups for plastic cups ,go figure, don't make sense
I believe that the first color logo change for McDonald’s happened in Sedona, Arizona when McDonalds approved turquoise colored arches instead of the usual golden color
In Thailand, Fast Food Shack outside the mall usually uses have black buildings, whether it's KFC, Mc or Burger King, even Domino's (if not black then dark brown), whether they will have café zone or not, and nah they don't have salads like you do Matz
14:46 Oh, I want to try a Big Rosti !! (sorry, my keyboard doesn't have umlauts!) Matthias, I've subscribed. I appreciate your presentation style, and rather quirky content themes. I'm in Ontario, Canada, by the way, where Mickey D's is also red & yellow. I don't remember the last time I sat and ate in a McD's - it's road food to me (something I get at a drive-through and eat/drink as I travel). 😎
Wealthier neighborhoods in America sometimes have zoning restrictions for external store signage. No garish designs or bright colors. That’s why those McDonald’s branches have such different external signage.
I used to live in France and was about to say that the logo is red over there, but after a Google search I realized that I had seen the green version a lot more
9:06 That’s weird, I’ve always heard that changing to green was an initiative from McDonald’s France, and then followed later by Switzerland and Germany
In Portugal I still remember McDonald's restaurants when it had the red logo when I was younger. Then there was a big change when I was a teen, around the early 2010s (2011/12 I think, it was when "Party Rock Anthem" was booming), when all of a sudden all McDonald's adopted the green logo. Not only that, most McDonald's in the country were actually rebuilt. There was also a big change in the way how McDonald's worked, as it became more like a café and less like a fast food restaurant. It seems this was a common decision across most of Europe.
As someone who has studied colour theory in university (I'm in architecture and interior design), I can say that the hue of green is important. The more saturated it is, the more it will be associated with fast food. It's basic, fast food is basic. Even then, as you say, it's not the most attention-grabbing colour. Higher-end restaurants are a different story. Toned-down earthy or natural greens work. These hues are associated with the natural environment, fresh produce, and food in general. However, green should be offset by other colours such as reds, oranges, yellows and browns, varying in saturation depending on the setting. White is associated with airiness and cleanliness. If green is too dominant or not the right shade, it can look like mould or someone's face before they throw up, associations you definitely don't with food. As mentioned, blue is generally a no-no. You know what else doesn't work? Large amounts of black. Great for a jazz club, not great for appetite.
@@colonelkomarov622 If it's used it's used sparingly. I don't know where you get your information from, but black is overwhelming avoided in the culinary industry except in small amounts.
Blue grapes, blue plums, and if you are rich; blue caviar, are only a few examples of things we eat that are blue. And blueberries, even if considered purple; purple is still a shade of blue.
At least it also enabled them to get rid of that terrifying Ronald McDonald! I do remember the UK restaurants in the 1980's when they had indoor flower beds - all plastic, plastic bench seating and Styrofoam containers for the burgers!
McDonald's has the Big Mac, but McDowell's has the Big Mick. They both have two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions. But McDonald's buns have sesame seeds. McDowell's buns have no seeds.
We take care more about aesthetic and ingredients. EU has more food restrictions, so our fast food is healthier (but still unhealthy for everyday diet) than in US. About aesthetic, well, we like to surround us by nice environment, and we do not like if some building affects on aesthetic of cities. If Mc Donald's would look like in US, probably wouldn't survive, because we would choose different restaurant. Notice, that our menu is also more vibrant in colours, has healthy positions, and more variety than US. You say Big Mac taste the same, maybe, but a list o ingredients is a bit different and slightly shorter in EU than US.
But to me green isn't more aesthetic. I think green appeals to millenials who may have grown up with Mcdonalds as they most likely had parents that weren't as health conscious when it came to fast food and aropund the 00's perhaps society was becoming more health conscious on a wider level regarding fast food.
That's really funny. I could have sworn that during my vacation in Denmark in the spring of 2024, I was in a red McDonald's. I just checked on Street View: it was actually green. I probably confused it with the Shell gas station across the street ;-)
The McDonalds sign has a red background in Sweden. But when it's somewhere else, like the building wall, or a flag or other sign type the background will be a darker green.
I like the new design in Europe. The old style was dated and looked very cheap. The new design with the wood looks more premium and fits European dining culture better and it fits well with their expanded menu options.
You’re right on it feeling more modern and premium. But the idea of McDonald’s fitting “dining culture” in Europe is a pretty funny one. I think most Europeans don’t consider this “dining” but only “eating”…
Well as i Finn i have only visited McDonalds in Finland and Sweden where i usually travel if i travel. As long as i remember we´ve had cartboard mugs for sodas and drinks. Only the lids and straws were plasticthere were a short while as there were some new milkshakes that had plastic mugs for one summer season, but the original milkshakes came in same cartboard cups as sodas. If you go here inside of the restaurant and eat there you don´t usually even get the lid for the drink, but if you take the food with you there is allways plastic lid. Straws are these days cartboard too becouse of EU laws. Before those laws came it was customers own desition do you take the straw or not.
One of the world's largest consumer packaging companies, Huhtamäki, is from Finland. It might be the reason for cardboard packaging being standard here long before people became aware about plastics.
13:29 this is exactly why in n out burger does not sound fascinating at all and in fact only stressful. Sounds like something like "hurry up and get your crap and then get out or we'll push you out, don't stay and enjoy anything, just go away" probably the worst name I could think of for a restaurant as an european
I was going to comment about how I live in the Netherlands and never noticed a green McDonald's sign, even had a little witty "steamed hams" reference all typed up, until I decided to look at photos of McDonalds restaurants in Amsterdam and found that there are indeed a few green ones - alongside a few that still retain their red logo. So it's kinda mixed over here, it seems. Anyway, since I didn't want to outright delete the joke I made before this discovery, here it is anyway. "Your McDonalds signs are green?" "Yes! It's a regional logo." "Uh-huh. Eh, what region?" "Uh... Europe?" "Really? Well, I'm from the Netherlands and I've never seen a green McDonald's sign." "Oh, not in the Netherlands, no. It's a German alternative." "I see."
You got a low salt fry at a McD without asking for low salt. Typically, I would have to ask for low salt fries when going to McD. McD tried to sell Salads a few years back in the USA, back when I worked at one before 2001. Turned out the salad offered was not healthy at all.
I always thought that the European McDonalds started in France after one of the restaurant got trashed by activist in 1997(?), because they saw it as the biggest threat to French culinaric culture.
In Argentina every McDonald’s location looks different lol. They pretty much adapt each store to the location. Same with Burger King. Burger King is usually very modern, has lots of wood and red bricks, but for example in Retiro train station, the Burger King location is all black and the chairs and tables are all vintage/classical to fit the building which is basically covered in marble and has hardwood flooring and a glass dome lol
By law restaurant must serve food to the table in some parts of Europe so McDonald's bends to that rule as well offering table delivery just to wash off fast food aura in favor of being a 'restaurant'
As an American, who travels a lot, I find fast food places are a great place to stop and use the restroom because they are everywhere, but I never eat there I prefer real food.
13:26 Isn't it McDonald's in Kraków on Floriańska street? When I was child it was one of firsts McDonald's opened in Kraków, so it was probably the first McDonald's I have been in. I've got a lot of pleasant memories related to that particular restaurant from my childhood.
Regarding colour choices: One chain that uses a lot of blue is Nordsee. That's no wonder because blue is instantly associated with water and the ocean, and Nordsee specializes on seafood. McDonald's? I've had a brief phase around 14 years of age when I actually liked it. But ever since it's only an emergency solution: If it's the only restaurant open at the time and location when I'm there, if I need a toilet, if I'm terribly hungry and have little time. But just about anything they offer can be easily obtained at higher quality elsewhere. Yes, you can get burgers made of organic grown meat from cattle grazing on mountain pastures, with freshly made ingredients served in an appetizing bun that actually has taste, grain and crunch to it (I always wonder why McD uses soft tasteless sponge bread ... well I kind of know since I've been to the USA and found out that's what people consider bread there. Hmf) with pumpkin seeds on top, with a refined spicy sauce. Interesting observation about the "Serviervorschlag" photos by the way. And actual burgers look nothing like that, no matter where you buy them.
@@uvbe I'm willing to bet this is thanks to an in-house taste testing team at McDonald's. If they ever need to adjust a product for a certain market, they will try out different ingredients, to find a recipe that comes as close to the original as they can reasonably get, while using ingredients that are legal in that market and cheap to source.
Nando’s wasn’t originally American. The first franchises were started in South Africa, before they expanded globally. But I believe they are headquartered outside of South Africa now
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I always thought the euro design was created to blend in with European historical city centers. I remember protests in Paris against the Mc ugliness inside historical façades. A bit later the green logos appeared.
Sehr schönes Video wie immer ich frage mich nur wieso auf English ? Ich meine ich habe kein Problem mit English aber ich hab das gefühl das de Deutschsprachigen Videos hier bei dir auf dem Channel deutlich besser ankommen also was die aufrufe betrifft. Ich kann mich natürlich auch irren xD
Ich schätze mal, wiederkehrende Zuschauer und Abonnenten sind überwiegend deutschsprachig, nach Jahren überwiegend deutscher Videos. Bei internationalen Reisen lässt sich mit englischen Videos die Zielgruppe auf die Native Speaker und alle mit ausreichend Fremdsprachenkenntniss in Englisch ausweiten. Nur dass es nochmal Zeit braucht, bis sich diese Zuschauer finden, und Videos im ersten Moment vielleicht weniger geklickt werden.
...and why was the Signature Collection discontinued? Those burgers were actually better than in a lot of other burger restaurants, as their product quality usually degrades after their first year of operation. A few years ago, on the way back home from the airport, I had a Signature Beef BBQ at the McDonald's Porz-Gremberghoven, that was the most perfect looking burger I've ever seen, it even looked better than in the pictures. When I think of burgers I still remember this perfect vividly and miss this burger dearly.
I studied color theory in art school, red stimulates the appetite. Meat and berries are red, so it appeals to our caveman brains. In the USA, bright green is the color of poison and spoilage not blue, so it may be different for the USA than the UK. In the USA, blue connotes loyalty and trustworthiness (think of "blue chip companies")
the most important thing I learned is McDonald's doesn't sell salads in the US anymore. I remember growing up in the late 90's early 00's seeing them on the menu all the way till 2008-2009 when it was the last time personally ventured into a McDonald's voluntarily( I've been to McDonald's like 5-7 times in the last 5 years cause of family and work related reasons). My Hypotheses as to why is McDonald's wasn't selling them as well as the signature Items and they gave up on the "healthy alternative" push they were doing in the Late 00's early 10's.
Being based in the UK, I had a look on Google Street View, the red and yellow signage definitely existed in the recent past, but most of the UK relocations have been refurbished to the new branding, regardless of whether they're standalone drive thrus or ground floor commercial units in town centres. The red is still used on very large totem poles as the background to the word "McDonald's".
Independent fast-food restaurants in London are all red & white, virtually without exception. It's almost colour-coded: red for hot food; blue for newsagents, cold food & drinks; green for groceries.
Some places in the US, such as my home state of New Jersey, do have single-use plastic and foam bans. Since I haven't eaten in a McDonald's for a very long time I don't know if it applies to them, but as a consumer at a grocery store you cannot get plastic bags or straws, or foam cups and plates. Plastic cups and spoons are still allowed, though that might change. Also, McDonald's here are not nearly as red as they used to be. They used to have a bright red roof. Now the building is neutral colors with "McDonald's" written in white and the signature M just a yellow outline. The standalone sign is still yellow, but that's about it. Also, most of the child-friendly marketing has been gone for more than a decade.
Before you comment "But McDonald's is red in country XYZ", hold your horse. Here's proof you're wrong: bit.ly/3WOqiYw
By the way the U.K. is still part of Europe!
@@gerhunengThe UK is mentioned in the video (14:22) AND in the blog post, and no one ever said it wasn't in Europe.
Have you noticed if there's a difference between the area/city/area it's located? I've noticed that if it's by a motorway it's plane and doesn't do much decoration wise. There's also the café ones in city centers and streetssnd in the less populated they look like the American ones. In Denmark, the arches makes up a seagull and we call them "Restaurant The Golden Seagull". 😅
In regards to the UK's thing it's the same here in Ireland.
@@MatthiasSchwarzerEnglish did you know in Scotland we dont have paper straws we have metal strews.
Mc Donald's green??? Live in the Netherlands, wood design yes but never ever saw a green yellow mc Donald's sign. Always saw it red and yellow.....until I googled it and discovered that in my own hometown they all are suddenly green and yellow ...and we have four of them. I have no idea when this happened😅. Either I really don't pay attention to my surroundings or...and I like to think that is the reason ...I started eating healthier and didn't go there that often...:-)
same xD
Four years ago 🤫
You don't pay attention
Same happened to me lol
Gradual change from around 2010 or so. Location changes to new design when it get renovated.
I was going to comment that in Norway all McDonalds are red. Then I googled pictures of them. And they're all green!!! When did this happen? I have a McDonalds less than 2 km from me and never noticed.
In Finland, at least what I found by comparing older Google Streetview pictures, seems that the color changed sometime around the year 2010 and most restaurant buildings were also renovated then. Most McDonalds locations in Finland still have the red color in the tall golden arches poles, though (as mentioned in the video).
I also haven't noticed here in Germany. I guess it's something to to with childhood memories burnt into our brains😂
Same! I had this idea that they're obviously red, but no, my local ones are green too. Guess I never paid attention.
corporate image manipulation that de-emphasizes meat..
I was also going to say that about the UK
If you think that is weird, I noticed for many years the primary colour branding for Honda worldwide is red but in America, it is blue.
Am wondering this myself ... and am not even a Honda fan 😂. I know of why Exxon is US only (Esso around the world) but not why honda is US=blue vs world =red
not really. everythink other than car is red in the usa. then you have to consider that honda is the largest engine manufacture or the world and the best sold product is the honda cup (tiny motorcycle). i actually would like be able to buy one of those in europe, that is not that styliesed versions we get but actually usefull.
Another interesting distinction is that they use different symbols for their cars and motorcycles. The color red is still used in their motorcycle logo.
Nintendo's classic logo is blue in Japan but red in the West.
@@nicholasharvey1232Maybe it was because of SEGA
Was like "wtf, it's not." And then i look at photos, and it is. WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?
I'm happy that you keep answering all the important questions in life.
Jokes aside, I really like this content. Good job!
I think I might actually have to add something. The green design change might actually come from even earlier than 2009. Because my local McDonalds in Hillerød, Denmark, opened in early 2008, and was the first new McDonalds in Denmark after several years of stagnation, and from the very start had the green branding, new logo, and design elements that are now commonplace across Europe. At the time McDonalds was also getting a lot of public backlash in Denmark as an increased public awareness was put on health and obesity, which hit McDonalds especially hard, making them take a hard diversion into appearing as a healthier food option with stuff like greens and veggies, salads, carrots, juice, and spring water coming onto the menu alongside a corporate rebrand from Red to Green. Interestingly though we didn't get McCafé until very recently.
Since this seems to be the earliest I could find on the McDonalds rebrand, it actually makes me wonder if my very local one might have been the guinea pig for the whole Europe-wide transformation of McDonalds.
Your point on McDonalds being incredibly effective at tailoring marketing to a local market is also very much on point. Here in Denmark they have some very peculiar ads. Like for getting young adults to start work there. McDonalds actually has a program here where a job in a McDonalds restaurant for a few years can actually give a diploma which matches a formal education in the hospitality and restaurant schools. They've also had ads showing some of the store managers, trying to break myths of working at or running a McDonalds restaurant, and more recently they've had ads claiming how sustainable they are, like using frying oil for their french fries that could be reused as biodiesel, or showing the quality and nurture that the potatoes for their fries come from.
Yeah it definitely started before 2009, I found an old BBC news article from January 2008 with a photo of a guy standing outside a green McDonalds.
My uncle works pretty high in McDonnald's - so at least I can confirm that often 1-2 locations are chosen to be "test beds" for concept which if successful is adopted around 1-2 years later in the rest of the region.
Also US has a location where they also try different stuff (I think they have 4 McDonnald's in vicinity, everyone has it's own menu and style.
The one in Frederiksberg where I live has changed looks and strategy way too much. It's always filled to the rim and Wolt takes up every cm of the place. I can't stand it.
Here in Hjørring there is no green branding(no red either) it's all just yellow and "wood color".
McDonald's being a great place to work in Denmark (one of the best work places in the country) was to try and save themselves. McDonald's had terrible conditions and multiple unions were going to boycott them (including some in the transportation industry), so they did a 180... because they'd like to stay in business.
It's kind of funny how they went to be one of the best places to work, from being one of the absolute worst.
A correction: Nando is not an american brand but a South African brand, and their food is based on Portuguese Pe-Ri Pe-Ri chicken. The cockerel you see in the brand, is actually based on the Galo de Barcelos, a symbol of Portugal. Red is also the color of our flag, so... yeah... the reason why they have red in the brand isn't just because of marketing but beacause their food being based on Portuguese cuisine.
@@BrokeBword im portuguese and ive never heard of ""pe-ri pe-ri chicken"
In Italy the MacDonald's burgers are different. The quality of the meat is higher than in the USA and in the last years they introduced some burgers with high quality "Chianina" meat and other Italian ingredients, like Asiago cheese, etc. The problem is that often you will spend as much money as in the restaurant next door...😂
I agree, like why eating at mcdo while you can get better for the same price. Yet, there is something about McDo that I like. I can sit there unbothered for an hour, no waiter is going to talk to me and the food is always the same. I don't need to go there between 12-13 or 19-21. That's why when I have a really bad day and I need to be alone I would go to Mcdo. It quites me down. Although, it happens to me maybe twice or max three times a year. But I appreciate anyways.
The same as me! 😂
The drop in quality coupled with inflation made McDonald's untenable. The saddest burger you've ever seen for a price of a decent meal.
@@valefur72 I assume it's challenging to cut costs on beef in EU. Even the lowest quality beef is decent.
I had spaghetti at an American McDonald's decades ago while vacationing there. I don't think it would have went over well with Italians as it was awful
Interesting that it's mentioned that blue is 'poison' and not something associated with food. In Israel there's blue McDonald's restaurants, which indicate Kosher.
Burgers are the opposite of kosher. The cheese goes on the meat.
@@DonHavjuanBurgers don't have cheese by default
@@DonHavjuanWell, speaking of the classic Hamburger, it is without cheese anyway.
I suppose they'll just offer the regular menu, but slightly adapted for it being actually kosher. Which also means no cheese on the burger.
In India, they've for example replaced any beef with chicken to adapt for this market.
@@DonHavjuanYes, Obviously Cheeseburgers are not kosher ... therefore they are, of course, not sold in kosher restaurants. Instead, the kosher restaurants sell Burgers without cheese (or any other milk products).
I'm not a big fan of the hole colour theory, there is something about it on a small scale if you isolate the colour but when you put it together with all the other things that goes into a, in this case, successful restaurant. They style and lighting inside the restaurant is a lot more important then the colours themselves. Blue in nature often means poison when talking food but many birds have blue on them as mating colours, so blue in nature is also a beautiful colour.
So experts take that knowledge and then translate it to our modern world, and that gives that if you ask an designer to design your logo, they might not use blue for a restaurant because they been told in design school that food and blue is a no go, but in the real world, the costumer don't care, they want a logo that catches you from the street and then the cleanliness and atmosphere of the restaurant itself takes over, until the food is served and then our decision to come back lies mainly on taste vs price the atmosphere. I will bet money 9n the fact that logo colour does not count at all for repeat visits.
The price and taste of the food is also more important then if the logo is red or green. And in this case with mcdonalds, they are such an established fast food chain that they could change their colour to dull brown and still sell the same amount of food I guess 😂
Very informative. In the UK we actually seem to have a 3-colour system. On the roads they are still red/yellow. In suburban areas they are moving to green/brown. But in the most sophisticated city centre areas, they are black. But as you say, the food is still presented in red packaging, which seems odd.
Interesting that unlike most fast food chains they are adaptable without apparently diluting the brand. I'm not a fan of the company, but it seems that the devil has all the best tunes.
As for health, in Europe the veggie and vegan menu is far more extensive than in the US, where new offerings are only being tested and haven't yet been rolled out nationally.
The vegan options: I wish that was the case in all countries, but for some reason Denmark only has that gnarly veggie quinoa-patty that isn’t even vegan 😭 Germany has the better options there. Even better is Max in Sweden!!
@@annaselbdritt7916 In the UK, vegans are becoming a significant percentage of the market. As a result, every bookshop has a vegan section, and all the main fast food chains have added some vegan options. McDonald's offer 12 vegan options, with 8 being available in all outlets.
@@tullochgorum6323 that’s great! 😊 shows how big a difference there is between the European countries
It's because the packaging is mass-produced, while the buildings themselves can be easily done in the color that is most fitting. It's not really odd. Besides, Europeans still think of McDonald's as red and yellow, even if the buildings might be using cozier colors like dark green or even black. So the packaging makes sense.
You are absolutely correct.
The EU get wooden spoons at McDonald's? We get paper spoons in the UK.
I guess there had to be some disadvantages to Brexit.
well paper is a wood product too, just a lot thinner, guess they had to cut costs some more in the UK then on teh mainland :)
Brexit is serving u guys well I guess
😂
Both are terrible
I agree with the idea that the dark green is a themed architecture look designed to match the cafe culture that they are targeting.
Actually to me it looks like *teal* which is a fashionable colour for quite a while now.
@@ReneHartmann You have a very good eye for color. Yes, there is a smidge of a blue shift in there.
@@ReneHartmann in person its more like a dark forest green.
I think you hit the spot
The difference is in culture and Europeans like to sit and enjoy a restaurant
I've seen americans talking about kicking people because they were in the restaurant too long. As a european thats such a weird thing to think about.
In my country Philippines, McDonald's take their CSR towards the environment seriously. The newer branches, built from 2022, have solar panels, bike lanes (in some branches), and concrete pavers infused with mixed plastic waste to minimize plastic waste in the waters.
I never noticed the green in the logo until this video, and I used to eat McDonald's way too often
In Canada McDonald's colours are brown and grey, with red and yellow. Like a depressed adult longing for their childhood. Also our McD's food went from being standard takeout, then adding salads, wraps and delicious toasted deli sandwiches and premium burgers...then back to standard garbage again. Canada is so weird.
The coffee is good, though.
In Canada, I have never seen that
@@Christopher-11C never seen what
@@cammcbri grey brown mcdonalds
@@Christopher-11C ok
In Poland there was a short period when McDonalds were in both red and green versions. The green version had heavy focus on ecology and sustainability (for example they asked you to turn off engine while waiting in drive thru). This shows there were some procedures tested at this period ;)
Für alle die es vermissen am Anfang 👉 Freunde
Let me gues from 0 german: All the fur die with worms in Anfang 👉 fraud ?
Personally in the UK where I live the big tall signs for McDonalds are red like in the US but the rest of it is like the other images he showed
Awesome as always.
Ziemlich gut gemacht. Es macht Spaß deine Berichte zu sehen, auch gerne weiterhin in Englisch 😊
Red for heart disease & yellow for vomit, a perfect fastfood combination.
orrr ketchup & mustard like you get on a cheese/hamburger 🤔
I prefer that to pickle-green honestly 🤢
Packaging at US McDonald's has changed since I first worked there as a teenager many decades ago. While the burger boxes were less sustainable then (Styrofoam), the cups were waxed paper instead of the plastic that you find today. While the cutlery was always plastic, I remember when it wasn't presented wrapped in yet more plastic. It really bothers me to throw away these plastic cups so I find myself taking them home and finding ways to reuse them until I can find a way to recycle them. Unfortunately for me, it seems unclear to me whether my local recycling program will accept these cups or not.
Plastic recycling is a basket case, and sometimes literally a dumpster fire.
Why are non-recyclable polymers still a thing and why are they still mixing recyclable and non-recyclable polymers in the same package?
The best is compostable utinsels and cups, in cities that have central composting and ban single-use plastics, as a few US cities have done. European wooden spoons are a similar thing (and not so hi-tech).
I don't remember McDonalds having styrofoam burger boxes. They were typically cardboard.
@@newguy371 Clamshell styrofoam boxes were around in the 1980s.
@@sluggo206 Fun fact: Compostable utensils and cups are not particularly much better. If it ends up in a landfill, it ends up the same as everything else. There are a LOT of cities around the world that wants to be "sustainable" but in the end ends up worse than they started.
Many upscale suburbs demanded changes decades ago. They would not allow bright garish colors on the exteriors of buildings, so many companies had to modify and tone down in those wealthier areas. Also a few years ago McDonald's made a strong move to try to rebrand as a coffee shop on top of fast food. McDonald's went with the McCafe promo by pushing coffee drinks and pastries. Many areas, especially the franchisees, backed off of that to a minimum but the company as a whole is still pushing to compete with Starbucks on that front. So you were very close with that comparison to Starbucks colors.
I thought McCafe was just the coffee itself.
@@sluggo206 it's the small coffee shop. Sometimes its on its own, but often it's inside a mcdonalds
Some time ago I heard something about McCafé being more profitable than the whole burger/fries part of McDonald’s, tbh it makes sense they probably have a much better profit margins with their McCafé products
@@agme8045 There's a joke that McDonalds is not really a hamburger restaurant but a french-fries restaurant because it gets more profit on the fries. Or maybe it's a soft-drink restaurant because it gets even more profit on those. Or it's a real-estate company holding strategic land parcels, and the restaurants are just a holding pattern until it can sell the parcels for top dollar.
Packaging of the fries is red in Europe because it has become an iconic piece of design. Just like the pack of Marlboro cigarettes or the can of Campbell soup.
The list of ingredients of fries in american McDonalds are different then those in Europe.
UK: Fries Ingredients: Potatoes, Non-Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (Rapeseed), Dextrose (predominantly added at beginning of the potato season). Prepared in the restaurants using a non-hydrogenated vegetable oil.
Salt is added after cooking.
USA: French Fries Ingredients: Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Natural Beef Flavor [wheat And Milk Derivatives]*), Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate (maintain Color), Salt.
*natural Beef Flavor Contains Hydrolyzed Wheat And Hydrolyzed Milk As Starting Ingredients.
Contains: Wheat, Milk.
Datas from McDonald sites
American living in the UK. The eat in packaging is definitely more sustainable in Europe as a whole, but last year I went to McDonald's in Paris and it was far and away the winner. Between a big Mac meal and a happy meal the only packaging was apple slices bag, a wrapper for the big Mac, and a small cardboard box for the toy. Everything else was reusable hard plastic dishes. Made me wonder why we package everything to go sit down and open it.
In my country, it's all wooden and cozy as well, but the sign is still red I didn't think about it until now of branding changes.
2:02 my grandpa was part of the team responsible for this specific roof shape (not the wooden slats tho, that was after his time, just the shape), it's a little sad to see his work disappearing
The change of target group seems to be supported by the fact that there is no dedicated room for children birthday parties anymore in McDonalds (at least in Poland).
were there dedicated rooms for parties? never seen that, I've only seen the parties in the general area
Same in the US. They removed most of the kid friendly things like playgrounds, and stopped doing birthday parties when my kids were little. Since I don't like their food, I pretty much stopped going there altogether because of that.
@@izimsiin some McDonald’s where I’m from, there used to be a separate section of the restaurant for families with young kids, next to the ball pit, slides, etc. And for birthdays parties they would go in that section. I imagine they did it that way to isolate the noise from the rest of the restaurant.
You are aware that McDonald's actually started out as a teen focused concept, right?
It was just that the teens grew up, had kids, and went to McDonald's and they switched... and now the pendulum is going back.
McD had salads on their menu in the US a few years ago, they just removed it recently. Those salads were amazing, tastier than in Europe and also bigger portion. I like the red, traditional McD design more though...
They did not sell well so where taken off the menu.
I remember the first McDonald's with a McDrive in "Huis ter Heide" in the Netherlands in 1987. It was close to a military base where US military were present at Soesterberg. We drove an hour just to order at the window. Fascinating....😂
been to europe 3 times and it never crossed my mind to take coffee-flavoured desserts at starbucks or eat at the de-glorified mcdonalds ..There is just so many delicious food to even consider that a choice.
Of course but sometimes for us Europeans its nice to get something different after coming home from work
I feel the same traveling. I want to try the local stuff and where people in the city goes to eat. I hardly eat fast food because I live in Copenhagen and there's a lot of other choices.
@@Aaron-dg1irwhere in Europe? We're not one country. There's cultural differences that makes our food culture different from each other.
@@charisma-hornum-fries True , but almost every Country in Europe has a McDonalds,KFC,Subway, Dominos and more. I agree that our local Food can be the better choice but sometimes it is also nice to grab a Burger at Late Night after Work
Because you are not European. We like to do it from time to time, it's something different.
"I asked an expert, Karen Haller, she lives in the UK..." She opens her mouth and screams "Australia!!!" 😁
1:57 DUDE THATS THE EXACT MCDONALDS I WORK AT 😭
Doxxed
What
As an American, one thing I always try to impress on people from other countries is exactly how much capitalism has infiltrated our day-to-day life. A lot of people would love to get rid of plastics, but the various chemical companies and producers won't have it. We also have briber...I mean lobbying.
Yes I'm European and don't understand the strong anti americanism in Europe, because (American) citizens can't really do things differently, the system is vicious
@@WazkatyCan you nuance your location? Europe is not a country. There's major differences from north to south and east to west.
@@charisma-hornum-fries
1- Why are you talking to me as if I was stupid ? Insulting people and asking them things at the same time, weird way to do things...
2- Why do you want to know?
3- Where are you ?
@@charisma-hornum-fries Being polite is better than treat people as if they are stupid. I'm tired of people like that, more of that. No I can't, you don't HAVE TO KNOW, or tell me what. The arrogance of the behaviour is incredible. Incredible!
PS: with this HIGH LEVEL of disrespect, be glad that I'm answering. You don't deserve it.
PS2: Norway is a beautiful country, don't know well but I'll go one day!
@@charisma-hornum-fries I get it. Europe is Europe. I am right. And yes, ideas and conviction are different, depending in where you are. OF COURSE. But, til now...
I don't understand why you can't realize your rudeness (I assume you don't, I prefer that). Unbelievable.
What was not mentioned at all in the video is food quality (yes, you touched on the salads and vegetales on the burgers). All modern (ie most, since corporate heavily subsidises this) McD stores make food "made to order". Meaning, nobody will make food unless it is ordered. There is no pile of bigmacs, because "hey somebody will probably order them in the next minutes". If its not ordered, it's not made, period. This includes everything, even fries if I remember correctly. Coffee is one of the best you can find, food quality is very good. Literally night and day.
ie, the green - quality focused, less bold branding has weight behind it.
The food is worse now that it's made to order. Probably just coincidental but it all tastes like saw dust now AND it's slow.
@@kricku slow yes, sure and of course. But arguably it tastes much better.
What is completely lost on me is value for money. The prices are crazy and you can almost get a proper burger from a burger joint for the prices.
@@Saliamongo That's capitalism at work, the concept of enshittification specifically (good one to read up on, if you haven't heard of the term 'enshittification' before). First, offer very low prices to establish yourself in a market and attract customers. Build rapport with those customers so they'll want to keep coming back. Then once you have a somewhat loyal userbase and little to no competition to undercut your prices, start driving up the prices to where most people will still pay. End result is much more revenue, and thus more profit. Which is always the ultimate goal of a big commercial company, especially if its traded on the stock market and has a board of stock holders. All stock holders care about is earning back as much money as possible on their investment.
In the Netherlands I still have to get used to McDonald's being yellow-green instead of yellow-red. As a kid I vividly remember the logos were red, and how the interiors had shiny tiles and bright saturated colors and lighting (and the Happy Meal toys were actually fun!). The restaurants now are nothing like they were 15 to 20 years ago. As a grown up, I do like the modern and unsaturated interiors with wood and stone themes, and I mainly just drop by to get a fresh cappuccino from the McCafé counter. What I find great is that they are reliable in what you get: open till late, free toilet, good parking, freshly made coffee, air conditioning, and accessible through many locations. Working on the road, it is a solid choice to spend the break.
I'm US, but live in Sweden. We were Stateside last December. I was amazed at the quality difference between here and Stateside.
The menu choices Stateside were far less and quality much poorer. It was the same in every McDonald's we visited.
Another great video Matthias. And I do like the little "in between the lines humor" of you.
Interesting video!
I figured it was some sort of 'eco' rebranding a few years ago myself, along with the laws that came into effect in the EU/UK over single use plastics.
One thing that shocked me which you also pick up in this video. After the single use plastics laws came into effect and then covid happened, I took a trip to the US after the lockdowns. In a single day I'd used more plastic than I do in an entire week in the UK, it really shocked me how little the average person seemed to care about the enviroment (I actually posted about this on a video when I got back and had a boat load of abuse telling me how I was wrong or to prove it).
I'm surprised they don't offer at least one salad though in the US.
Ich finde deine Beiträge immer sehr gut journalistisch aufbereitet!
Packaging goes even further in France, because of regulations fast foods are required to serve food in reusable packaging and avoid cardboard when eating on site. So your fries come in a rigid plastic cup, so does your soda and ice cream, only burgers are allowed to be packaged in paper.
As someone who worked at a McDonald's for... quite awhile, this is fascinating. It's interesting that you say that compared to the States, McDonald's in Europe look modern, and not like a fast food restaurant anymore. The reason that's interesting is because McDonald's in the US underwent a change TO its current look within the last couple of decades, with the objective of looking more modern, more cozy, more like a place you want to relax and spend time at. Every McDonald's you showed has the "new" "modern" design.
I've noticed on the Internet complaints about fast food places all looking the same now, how they're all boring, minimalist, an corporate looking. People have a lot of nostalgia for fun, cartoonish look of McDonald's from their childhood.
i used to miss it when the change was recent. But thinking about it a decade later, I don't think i'd like to eat a burger in the stink of kid's feet from the playroom in the restaurant.
A lot of complaints, yet they keep coming back. The thing is, McDonald's started as a restaurant for teens... Then the teens grew up, and needed a place to feed their kids, McDonald's became a family restaurant which McDonald's embraced, but then those kids grew up, and it's back to a teen restaurant, and you are seeing a shift towards it becoming a family restaurant again.
McDonald's in the United States used to use paper cups for all beverages except the largest drinks until only a few years ago.
The European Union's Audiovisual Media Services Directive has led to the cessation of advertising junk food to children. As a result, McDonald's can no longer depend on children as a primary customer base and must adapt its marketing strategies to appeal to more health-conscious adults.
McDonald's in NYC & California went from paper cups 🥤 & banning plastic straws & using paper straws, then droped paper cups for plastic cups ,go figure, don't make sense
I believe that the first color logo change for McDonald’s happened in Sedona, Arizona when McDonalds approved turquoise colored arches instead of the usual golden color
In Thailand, Fast Food Shack outside the mall usually uses have black buildings, whether it's KFC, Mc or Burger King, even Domino's (if not black then dark brown), whether they will have café zone or not, and nah they don't have salads like you do Matz
As an American
When i got to France and ordered a quarter pounder i was disappointed it wasnt labeled a “royal with cheese” 😢
Pulp Fiction vibes xD
They should have it listed just for tourists.
On the French McDonald's web site the thing is acutally labeled "Le Royal Cheese™". In Germany it is called "Hamburger Royal TS" (without ™)
In Spain is still called quarter pounder. "Cuarto de Libra"
@@dabbasw31 royal ts is tge tomato and lettuce version tho
Have to admit, I never noticed that before viewing this video... 😅Greetings from Italy
I was a tween and remember being pissed off that they changed it to look like a café lmao
watching this while on the clock at a mcdonald’s
Literally it's just greenwashing
At least what they do actually has an impact... but it's clearly just capitalism because Americans still bathe in single-use plastics
14:46 Oh, I want to try a Big Rosti !! (sorry, my keyboard doesn't have umlauts!)
Matthias, I've subscribed. I appreciate your presentation style, and rather quirky content themes.
I'm in Ontario, Canada, by the way, where Mickey D's is also red & yellow. I don't remember the last time I sat and ate in a McD's - it's road food to me (something I get at a drive-through and eat/drink as I travel). 😎
Rösti? Use an iPad or iPhone.
Wealthier neighborhoods in America sometimes have zoning restrictions for external store signage. No garish designs or bright colors. That’s why those McDonald’s branches have such different external signage.
Yep. I was just on a vacation in Sedona, AZ and due to signage restrictions, their McDonald's sign was turquoise instead of the usual red and yellow.
I used to live in France and was about to say that the logo is red over there, but after a Google search I realized that I had seen the green version a lot more
9:06 That’s weird, I’ve always heard that changing to green was an initiative from McDonald’s France, and then followed later by Switzerland and Germany
In Portugal I still remember McDonald's restaurants when it had the red logo when I was younger. Then there was a big change when I was a teen, around the early 2010s (2011/12 I think, it was when "Party Rock Anthem" was booming), when all of a sudden all McDonald's adopted the green logo. Not only that, most McDonald's in the country were actually rebuilt. There was also a big change in the way how McDonald's worked, as it became more like a café and less like a fast food restaurant. It seems this was a common decision across most of Europe.
As someone who has studied colour theory in university (I'm in architecture and interior design), I can say that the hue of green is important. The more saturated it is, the more it will be associated with fast food. It's basic, fast food is basic. Even then, as you say, it's not the most attention-grabbing colour. Higher-end restaurants are a different story. Toned-down earthy or natural greens work. These hues are associated with the natural environment, fresh produce, and food in general. However, green should be offset by other colours such as reds, oranges, yellows and browns, varying in saturation depending on the setting. White is associated with airiness and cleanliness. If green is too dominant or not the right shade, it can look like mould or someone's face before they throw up, associations you definitely don't with food. As mentioned, blue is generally a no-no. You know what else doesn't work? Large amounts of black. Great for a jazz club, not great for appetite.
@@anthonysaunders345 What about a Jazz club restaurant? Would black work there?
Black is color of premium foods, drinks, restaurants, clubs, shops etc ...
@@colonelkomarov622 If it's used it's used sparingly. I don't know where you get your information from, but black is overwhelming avoided in the culinary industry except in small amounts.
Blue grapes, blue plums, and if you are rich; blue caviar, are only a few examples of things we eat that are blue. And blueberries, even if considered purple; purple is still a shade of blue.
At least it also enabled them to get rid of that terrifying Ronald McDonald! I do remember the UK restaurants in the 1980's when they had indoor flower beds - all plastic, plastic bench seating and Styrofoam containers for the burgers!
McDonald's has the Big Mac, but McDowell's has the Big Mick. They both have two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions. But McDonald's buns have sesame seeds. McDowell's buns have no seeds.
I'll just slap some Soul-Glo in my hair and let that comment sink in...
@@G60syncro Ah-Hchau Ah-Hchau!
We take care more about aesthetic and ingredients. EU has more food restrictions, so our fast food is healthier (but still unhealthy for everyday diet) than in US. About aesthetic, well, we like to surround us by nice environment, and we do not like if some building affects on aesthetic of cities. If Mc Donald's would look like in US, probably wouldn't survive, because we would choose different restaurant. Notice, that our menu is also more vibrant in colours, has healthy positions, and more variety than US. You say Big Mac taste the same, maybe, but a list o ingredients is a bit different and slightly shorter in EU than US.
But to me green isn't more aesthetic. I think green appeals to millenials who may have grown up with Mcdonalds as they most likely had parents that weren't as health conscious when it came to fast food and aropund the 00's perhaps society was becoming more health conscious on a wider level regarding fast food.
That's really funny. I could have sworn that during my vacation in Denmark in the spring of 2024, I was in a red McDonald's. I just checked on Street View: it was actually green. I probably confused it with the Shell gas station across the street ;-)
The McDonalds sign has a red background in Sweden. But when it's somewhere else, like the building wall, or a flag or other sign type the background will be a darker green.
In UK there are/were existing brands using red. A lot of fast food and shopping outlets moved away from red.
McDonalds: Green is a commitment to the environment.
Germany: How so?
McDonalds: We need 25% fewer polar bear spleens to make the dyes for our signs.
I had no idea so many fast food brands used red/yellow in their branding! Seeing so many in one photo made me realize it haha
I like the new design in Europe. The old style was dated and looked very cheap. The new design with the wood looks more premium and fits European dining culture better and it fits well with their expanded menu options.
I miss the old design as it was more playful to me
You’re right on it feeling more modern and premium. But the idea of McDonald’s fitting “dining culture” in Europe is a pretty funny one.
I think most Europeans don’t consider this “dining” but only “eating”…
@@sjc75vs I think a golden m logo against dark green would look more premium and even be more fitting but then it might look too formal.
My local McD in Sweden have both the green and red sign. Red to show times open and green for everything else. I never noticed.
Well as i Finn i have only visited McDonalds in Finland and Sweden where i usually travel if i travel. As long as i remember we´ve had cartboard mugs for sodas and drinks. Only the lids and straws were plasticthere were a short while as there were some new milkshakes that had plastic mugs for one summer season, but the original milkshakes came in same cartboard cups as sodas. If you go here inside of the restaurant and eat there you don´t usually even get the lid for the drink, but if you take the food with you there is allways plastic lid. Straws are these days cartboard too becouse of EU laws. Before those laws came it was customers own desition do you take the straw or not.
One of the world's largest consumer packaging companies, Huhtamäki, is from Finland. It might be the reason for cardboard packaging being standard here long before people became aware about plastics.
"Restaurant Goldene Möve" is the name we use in my social circle.
McDonald's adaptability to the desires of their various customers is why I hold stock in the company.
? ok
13:29 this is exactly why in n out burger does not sound fascinating at all and in fact only stressful. Sounds like something like "hurry up and get your crap and then get out or we'll push you out, don't stay and enjoy anything, just go away" probably the worst name I could think of for a restaurant as an european
I was going to comment about how I live in the Netherlands and never noticed a green McDonald's sign, even had a little witty "steamed hams" reference all typed up, until I decided to look at photos of McDonalds restaurants in Amsterdam and found that there are indeed a few green ones - alongside a few that still retain their red logo. So it's kinda mixed over here, it seems.
Anyway, since I didn't want to outright delete the joke I made before this discovery, here it is anyway.
"Your McDonalds signs are green?"
"Yes! It's a regional logo."
"Uh-huh. Eh, what region?"
"Uh... Europe?"
"Really? Well, I'm from the Netherlands and I've never seen a green McDonald's sign."
"Oh, not in the Netherlands, no. It's a German alternative."
"I see."
You got a low salt fry at a McD without asking for low salt. Typically, I would have to ask for low salt fries when going to McD. McD tried to sell Salads a few years back in the USA, back when I worked at one before 2001. Turned out the salad offered was not healthy at all.
I always thought that the European McDonalds started in France after one of the restaurant got trashed by activist in 1997(?), because they saw it as the biggest threat to French culinaric culture.
In Argentina every McDonald’s location looks different lol. They pretty much adapt each store to the location. Same with Burger King. Burger King is usually very modern, has lots of wood and red bricks, but for example in Retiro train station, the Burger King location is all black and the chairs and tables are all vintage/classical to fit the building which is basically covered in marble and has hardwood flooring and a glass dome lol
By law restaurant must serve food to the table in some parts of Europe so McDonald's bends to that rule as well offering table delivery just to wash off fast food aura in favor of being a 'restaurant'
I live in a part of europe where we don't do that and i was fucking weirded out when they did that in france. it feels wrong.
As an American, who travels a lot, I find fast food places are a great place to stop and use the restroom because they are everywhere, but I never eat there I prefer real food.
13:26 Isn't it McDonald's in Kraków on Floriańska street? When I was child it was one of firsts McDonald's opened in Kraków, so it was probably the first McDonald's I have been in. I've got a lot of pleasant memories related to that particular restaurant from my childhood.
Come to Canada, we've got a maple leaf in the middle of the golden arches :)
Regarding colour choices: One chain that uses a lot of blue is Nordsee. That's no wonder because blue is instantly associated with water and the ocean, and Nordsee specializes on seafood.
McDonald's? I've had a brief phase around 14 years of age when I actually liked it. But ever since it's only an emergency solution: If it's the only restaurant open at the time and location when I'm there, if I need a toilet, if I'm terribly hungry and have little time. But just about anything they offer can be easily obtained at higher quality elsewhere. Yes, you can get burgers made of organic grown meat from cattle grazing on mountain pastures, with freshly made ingredients served in an appetizing bun that actually has taste, grain and crunch to it (I always wonder why McD uses soft tasteless sponge bread ... well I kind of know since I've been to the USA and found out that's what people consider bread there. Hmf) with pumpkin seeds on top, with a refined spicy sauce.
Interesting observation about the "Serviervorschlag" photos by the way. And actual burgers look nothing like that, no matter where you buy them.
Arent the ingredients different? A lot of additives in the US are banned in Europe?
Of course, they could not open if that was the case. In fact, all McDonalds fresh ingredients are sourced locally. The sauces are made in EU.
probably, but what he remarks is that the taste is the same, even if it's slightly less unhealthy
@@uvbe I'm willing to bet this is thanks to an in-house taste testing team at McDonald's. If they ever need to adjust a product for a certain market, they will try out different ingredients, to find a recipe that comes as close to the original as they can reasonably get, while using ingredients that are legal in that market and cheap to source.
Nando’s wasn’t originally American. The first franchises were started in South Africa, before they expanded globally.
But I believe they are headquartered outside of South Africa now
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If you think that is weird, I noticed for many years the primary colour branding for Honda worldwide is red but in America, it is blue.
Warum deutscher Titel und englische Sprache ?
It was also red in Europe, but I am glad they changed it, that old design with clown was creepy.
they're red here in finland
…as mentioned in the video at 14:40.
On täällä vihreitäkin, piti ihan google mapsista tarkistaa. Kaikki lähimmät mäkkärit oli vihreitä.
I always thought the euro design was created to blend in with European historical city centers. I remember protests in Paris against the Mc ugliness inside historical façades. A bit later the green logos appeared.
Sehr schönes Video wie immer ich frage mich nur wieso auf English ? Ich meine ich habe kein Problem mit English aber ich hab das gefühl das de Deutschsprachigen Videos hier bei dir auf dem Channel deutlich besser ankommen also was die aufrufe betrifft. Ich kann mich natürlich auch irren xD
Ich schätze mal, wiederkehrende Zuschauer und Abonnenten sind überwiegend deutschsprachig, nach Jahren überwiegend deutscher Videos. Bei internationalen Reisen lässt sich mit englischen Videos die Zielgruppe auf die Native Speaker und alle mit ausreichend Fremdsprachenkenntniss in Englisch ausweiten. Nur dass es nochmal Zeit braucht, bis sich diese Zuschauer finden, und Videos im ersten Moment vielleicht weniger geklickt werden.
Der Komplet Kanal ist von ihm hier englisch
Du bist auf dem falschen Kanal. Das hier ist sein englischsprachiger Channel. Er hat immer noch seinen deutschen Kanal
...and why was the Signature Collection discontinued? Those burgers were actually better than in a lot of other burger restaurants, as their product quality usually degrades after their first year of operation. A few years ago, on the way back home from the airport, I had a Signature Beef BBQ at the McDonald's Porz-Gremberghoven, that was the most perfect looking burger I've ever seen, it even looked better than in the pictures. When I think of burgers I still remember this perfect vividly and miss this burger dearly.
I think it might be regional - I've seen those signature collection burgers on sale in Dubai and Hong Kong in the last few months.
I studied color theory in art school, red stimulates the appetite. Meat and berries are red, so it appeals to our caveman brains. In the USA, bright green is the color of poison and spoilage not blue, so it may be different for the USA than the UK. In the USA, blue connotes loyalty and trustworthiness (think of "blue chip companies")
the most important thing I learned is McDonald's doesn't sell salads in the US anymore. I remember growing up in the late 90's early 00's seeing them on the menu all the way till 2008-2009 when it was the last time personally ventured into a McDonald's voluntarily( I've been to McDonald's like 5-7 times in the last 5 years cause of family and work related reasons). My Hypotheses as to why is McDonald's wasn't selling them as well as the signature Items and they gave up on the "healthy alternative" push they were doing in the Late 00's early 10's.
Red and yellow are associated with ketchup and mustard 🔴🟡
Being based in the UK, I had a look on Google Street View, the red and yellow signage definitely existed in the recent past, but most of the UK relocations have been refurbished to the new branding, regardless of whether they're standalone drive thrus or ground floor commercial units in town centres. The red is still used on very large totem poles as the background to the word "McDonald's".
Are you really getting plastic cutlery in real restaurants in the US? This seems really cheap O_o
Only fast food places usually.
Independent fast-food restaurants in London are all red & white, virtually without exception. It's almost colour-coded: red for hot food; blue for newsagents, cold food & drinks; green for groceries.
So essentially european mcdonalds tries to match the starbucks aesthetic?
No
There was a time McDonald's did have salads and healthier stuff on the menu in the US, but it did not sell so they removed it.
Some places in the US, such as my home state of New Jersey, do have single-use plastic and foam bans. Since I haven't eaten in a McDonald's for a very long time I don't know if it applies to them, but as a consumer at a grocery store you cannot get plastic bags or straws, or foam cups and plates. Plastic cups and spoons are still allowed, though that might change. Also, McDonald's here are not nearly as red as they used to be. They used to have a bright red roof. Now the building is neutral colors with "McDonald's" written in white and the signature M just a yellow outline. The standalone sign is still yellow, but that's about it. Also, most of the child-friendly marketing has been gone for more than a decade.