McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast-food restaurant chain, serving over 69 million customers daily in over 100 countries in more than 40,000 outlets as of 2021. McDonald’s is best known for its hamburgers, cheeseburgers and french fries, although their menu also includes other items like chicken, fish, fruit, and salads. Their best-selling licensed item are their french fries, followed by the Big Mac.
McDonald’s has a presence in more than 100 countries and more than 36,000 outlets. The fast-food chain does not have a strong presence in Africa with South Africa, Morocco and Egypt being some of the few countries in the continent where it operates.
About 85 percent of these restaurants are operated under the franchise model, which typically lasts for 20 years.
Nairobi, also known as the gateway to Africa, is Kenya’s capital and one of the most established business hubs on the continent. The city in the sun as it is known hosts thousands of Kenyan businesses and over 1000 major international companies and organizations, including the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment) and the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON).
In the last few years, several food chains have opened doors in Nairobi including KFC, Dominos, Subway and Coldstone Creamery.
The presence of a growing middle class that guarantees sales is one of the key factors that inform such decisions, making countries like Kenya attractive as new frontiers that can guarantee maximum profitability with the least investment. Global brands are also known to consider infrastructure, cultural influences and trade regulations, among other factors.
So is there a McDonalds in Kenya? Unfortunately not yet.
In 2014, McDonald’s invited investors to put in applications for a Kenya franchise, sending out the strongest signal yet of its plans to open shop in Nairobi. The American fast food chain said it was looking for investors who have retail experience and “willingness to devote full time to the McDonald’s restaurant business, knowledge of the real estate market (and) significant capital”.
“We will retain all information sent to us in a database and give you consideration if we take steps to develop McDonald’s restaurants in Kenya,” said McDonald’s in the statement.
This plan was shelved three years later in 2017 due to weaknesses in the supply chain that would have made it difficult for the restaurant chain to operate in Kenya. The lack of a legal framework which makes it difficult for restaurants to trace supplies back to the source made Mc Donalds change its mind.
KFC for instance imports processed, pre-blanched, blast-frozen potato French fries from Egypt and South Africa because it has total traceability back to the source. This is critical in case of any health and safety issues.
Another problem that has hampered the entry of Kenyan farmers into the supply chain of these global food giants is the lack of certified seeds.
The World Bank, in a 2021 report, noted the potatoes being imported could be grown locally.
“Only 5 percent of varieties from Karlo and Kephis are suitable for processing, yet Karlo does not have the capacity to multiply enough seed of these top varieties, even when operating at full capacity,” said the World Bank. “Indeed, Kenyan processors supplying frozen chips to high-end hospitality chains are importing ware potato from these two countries – locking out local farmers from this high-value industry.”
So far Mcdonald’s operates in just four African countries; Egypt, Mauritania, Morocco and South Africa. This does not mean that Kenya does not have good restaurants. There are thousands of them that produce good food.
You can find a list of the best restaurants in Nairobi here according to Tripadvisor.
