MCDONALD'S NORTH & EAST GAINS FROM INNOVATION AND EXPANSION

Rajeev Ranjan, the Managing Director of McDonald's India North and East, reflects on the dynamic journey of steering one of India's favorite Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) brands amidst challenges and opportunities. In an exclusive interview, he delves into the brand's resilience during the uncertainties brought by the COVID-19 pandemic and outlines ambitious expansion plans for the North-East region.

- Beny Sachdeva as

Ranjan also discusses key market shifts, technological advancements, and strategic innovations driving McDonald's growth.

You have been leading India's favorite QSR brand. How has the journey been so far?

• The journey of leading McDonald's India North and East has been fairly challenging and incredibly exciting. It's been challenging due to the immense uncertainties that COVID brought into our business suddenly it's also been exciting because the situation demanded riskier, bolder decision-making than ever before, with skeletal information, frequent resource allocation and re-allocation, and swift agile execution in a severely constrained external environment. The immense learnings gathered during this journey of bringing back the business to better than the pre-COVID era in a short span of time have been humbling, gratifying, and energizing.

Anticipating and adapting to the evolving needs of our esteemed customers has been the forte of the team at McDonald's India North and East. The unwavering support and trust of our customers, supply partners, and passionate contribution of team members have played a pivotal role in making this journey an enriching and unforgettable experience.

Please take us through your expansion plans in the North-East.

• We are expanding rapidly. We added 20% new restaurants last year and have plans to add 25% new restaurants this year, further accelerating this pace in the coming years.