A Golden Arch

On October 25， 2017， breaking news flooded China’s websites and social media： The global fast-food giant McDonald’s changed its Chinese name from Maidanglao， a rough transliteration of the English word， to Jingongmen， which literally means “Golden Arches，” earlier that month.

Actually， the name change was a long time coming. In January 2017， China’s CITIC Group purchased Chinese mainland and Hong Kong McDonald’s operations for US$2.08 billion， and a new joint venture was established in August. According to China’s industrial and commercial administration， in August，“Golden Arches” had already replaced“McDonald’s” as the name of the new joint venture. Although McDonald’s stated on its Chinese social media account that the name change was “only for licensing and permits， and would not extend to the physical stores，” which would retain the name of McDonald’s， the new name still stirred a sensation. Compared to the transliteration， many dislike the new name and refuse to accept it.

Origin of the “Golden Arches”

The term “Golden Arches” has been synonymous with McDonald’s since its beginnings. In the 1997 book Golden Arches East： McDonald’s in East Asia compiled by professor of anthropology James L. Watson at Harvard， sociologists had already begun to use “Golden Arches” to refer to McDon- ald’s in Asia.

The original design of McDonald’s structures featured two prominent golden arches， one on each side of the building. The two arches were not meant to form an“M，” as they clearly do now in the logo. But as its popularity increased， the restaurant wanted a logo which would enable its customers to quickly identify its location， so the two arches met to form an “M.”

By the end of the 1960s， McDonald’s had already begun to use the golden arches on signs across the United States. Although its management team frequently discussed the possibility of a new logo over the years， it never happened. According to reports， a senior marketing expert suggested McDonald’s maintain brand consistency because the golden arches carried the “Freudian symbolism of a pair of nourishing breasts.”

Across the decades， small changes still took place on the logo： The arches once became both taller and thicker， and the shading varied. However， the fundamental design remained the same. Around the globe， the golden arches make people immediately and only think of the same thing： McDonald’s.

McDonald’s in China

In 1990， after having already been operating in many countries around the world for many years， McDonald’s finally broke into the Chinese mainland market with a restaurant in Shenzhen. Burgers， fries， Coke， and shakes， common food for Chinese today， were bizarre and alien back then. Kids quickly fell in love with the food and Happy Meal toys while their parents believed they were sampling American culture. As business continued booming， McDonald’s gradually opened more restaurants in many Chinese cities including Beijing， Guangzhou， Shanghai， Tianjin， Wuhan， and Nanjing， ultimately expanding across all of China. Now there are about 2，500 McDonald’s outlets on the Chinese mainland.

Zhu Pengcheng translated the Chinese version of Golden Arches East： McDonald’s in East Asia. In his opinion， alongside obvious attractions such as foreign food and American culture， the success of McDonald’s on the Chinese mainland can be attributed to several deeper causes. “Localization and standardization are of great importance.”

Comprehending localization is not difficult. Around the globe， the food service retailer quickly gains abundant experience in integrating into local cultures and communities. McDonald’s arrived in China’s mainland in 1990 when the country’s reform and opening up entered a fastdeveloping phase. Social and economic development created huge spending power. At the same time， implementation of the“one-child policy” fundamentally changed the country’s family structure compared to prior decades. Three-person nuclear families， a couple with one child， became the norm， especially in cities. Kids became the center of the families and youngsters gained consumption capabilities their fathers could have hardly imagined. McDonald’s willingness to host parties proved popular in China， especially birthday parties for younger children. In China， the es- tablishment became as much a recreational venue as an eatery. Chinese customers visit the place not necessarily for food， but more for social and recreational activities.

Standardization is a principle that McDonald’s has maintained since its inception. “Imagine landing in a completely new country and finding a McDonald’s in the airport，” explains Zhu Pengcheng.“When you quickly have recognizable tastes in your mouth， your sense of insecurity brought by the alien place is dispelled to a large extent. Items on this McDonald’s menu are exactly the same as the one across the street in your neighborhood.”

Just based on localization and standardization， McDonald’s has been recognized in China and many other countries as a symbol of American culture.

Ambitious Expansion Plan

As for the name change of McDonald’s on the Chinese mainland， many believe it is part of the fast-food chain’s strategy for further and deeper localization. After the completion of the strategic partner- ship with CITIC Group， McDonald’s announced plans to increase the number of its restaurants from 2，500 to 4，500 on the Chinese mainland over the next five years. To achieve this goal， China’s third- and fourth-tier cities will be the focus of the expansion. The company wants at least 45 percent of its restaurants in China to be located in such cities.

“The new McDonald’s joint venture can be seen as a strategic investment，”opines Li Jing， dean of the Economics School at Chongqing Technology and Business University. “The fast-food chain obviously wants to promote further development and innovation on the Chinese mainland with its existing resources and advantages. Brand equity is not only about the name itself， but also the trust that customers hold in the brand.”

Zhu Danpeng， a renowned commentator on China’s food industry， believes McDonald’s has been looking for the opportunity to bring in strategic investors to operate franchises on a larger scale in China. The fast-food chain opted to work with China’s CITIC Group because it sees now as the time to seize on development opportunities brought by consumption upgrades in China’s third- and fourth-tier cities.

However， the fast-food giant must admit that the competition it faces today in China starkly contrasts the situation when it first arrived. Take Waimai.meituan.com， an online food ordering and delivery platform which was launched at the end of 2013， as an example. The number of stores on the platform is expected to exceed 1.5 million by the end of 2017. And platforms like this are definitely not rare in China today. Chinese people discover millions of new and emerging eating options every day.

For Chinese millennials， the only remaining “exotic charm” of McDonald’s might be its foreign name. “The cultural gap brought by transliteration piles up good feelings and imagination of a foreign culture，” remarks Zhu Pengcheng. “But the fast-food chain’s localization process has been going on the entire time.”