--- title: So long, Bolshoi Mak - The Hustle description: After suspending Russian operations in March, McDonald’s has decided to sell off and “de-Arch” its 800+ stores. image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/273011785-HS-News-Brief_2022-05-16T234317.010Z.webp --- # So long, Bolshoi Mak ![Juliet Bennett Rylah](https://53.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/53/assets/hubspot.com/web-team/WBZ/HubSpot%20Media/Blog%202021/Images/Nav/Optimized/TheHustle_Icon_Dark.svg) [Juliet Bennett Rylah](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/juliet-bennett-rylah) [Juliet Bennett Rylah Twitter profile ](https://twitter.com/JBRylah) Published: May 17, 2022 Updated: October 11, 2023 After 30+ years, McDonald’s and Russia are over. ![So long, Bolshoi Mak](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/273011785-HS-News-Brief_2022-05-16T234317.010Z.webp?width=595&height=400&name=273011785-HS-News-Brief_2022-05-16T234317.010Z.webp) Following the invasion of Ukraine, McDonald’s temporarily closed its 800+ Russian stores at a loss of [~$127m](https://www.restaurantdive.com/news/mcdonalds-shuttered-ukraine-russia-restaurants-cost-127m-in-q1/622927/#:~:text=McDonald's%20reported%20Thursday%20that%20shuttering,Russia%20has%20cost%20%24127%20million.), split between Russian employees’ continued salaries and wasted inventory, in Q1. But now, the fast-food chain has [decided](https://corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/en-us/our-stories/article/ourstories.mcd-exit-russia.html) that owning stores in Russia is “no longer tenable, nor… consistent with McDonald’s values.” #### **Russia’s first McDonald’s opened in 1990…** … back when the country was still the Soviet Union. It took 14 years of negotiation, but the [900-seat restaurant](https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/03/08/soviet-union-mcdonalds-moscow/) — then the largest McDonald’s in the world — was an instant hit. Long lines formed in Moscow for the “Bolshoi Mak” — the Big Mac — despite the relatively high prices compared to Soviet wages. McDonald’s sold [34k](https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/01/31/mcdonalds-in-russia-turns-30-a69111) burgers that first day. #### **What’s next?** McDonald’s plans to sell its Russian stores — [~15%](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/16/mcdonalds-says-it-will-sell-its-russia-business-after-previously-pausing-operations-due-to-ukraine-war.html) of which are franchises — to a local buyer. As a result, the company expects to write off a $1.2B-$1.4B charge. As for the stores, they’ll be “de-Arched,” which means removing the McDonald’s name, logo, branding, and menu. #### **While McDonald’s complete exit is unique…** … other restaurant chains have also halted business in Russia: - Starbucks and the licensed partner that operates its 130 Russian stores agreed to [pause](https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2022/letter-to-partners-from-kevin-johnson-on-ukraine/) operations - Yum Brands has [suspended](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/16/business/mcdonalds-russia.html) operations at its 1k KFC and 50 Pizza Hutfranchises It’s complicated for Mickey D’s rival, Burger King: Parent company Restaurant Brands International wants to close its 800 Russian locations, but [can’t](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/mar/18/burger-king-owner-says-operator-in-russia-refuses-to-shut-shops-ukraine) due to a legal contract with its main franchisee, who refuses. Instead, it’s trying to offload its 15% stake. Topics: [International](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/international) [Food](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/food) ## Follow us on social media prev next - ![The world was already horrifying — technology is making it more so](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/457134246-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-tech_20231010211706.webp) ### The world was already horrifying — technology is making it more so - ![Holy smokes, there may actually be a limit to Texans’ love of barbecue](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1244337807-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Texas-BBQ_20230928210924.webp) ### Holy smokes, there may actually be a limit to Texans’ love of barbecue - ![Think your industry is weird? Get a load of the beaded ice cream business](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/908447747-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-dippindots_20231002233115.webp) ### Think your industry is weird? Get a load of the beaded ice cream business - ![When did the packaged food aisle get so cool?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2070592382-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Packaging_20231003215516.webp) ### When did the packaged food aisle get so cool? - ![The cereal industry’s forecast has no added sugar](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/258270469-19-News-Brief_2023-09-24T200813.124Z.webp) ### The cereal industry’s forecast has no added sugar - ![One chip, several problems](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/161461033-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-paqui_20230914213352.webp) ### One chip, several problems - ![Meta vs. Canada is a long pattern of dismantling news](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1038385209-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-newspaper_20230823220232.webp) ### Meta vs. Canada is a long pattern of dismantling news - ![The shroom boom is coming to the candy aisle](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1460885417-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Mushrooms_20230816224353-1.webp) ### The shroom boom is coming to the candy aisle - ![A Pop-Tarts and Crocs partnership exists because we’re all total suckers](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1897903693-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-croc-tarts_20230814231514.webp) ### A Pop-Tarts and Crocs partnership exists because we’re all total suckers - ![L’Eggo my… booze in a jar?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/858195133-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Eggo_20230822212534.webp) ### L’Eggo my… booze in a jar? Pop up for Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Get the 5-minute news brief keeping 2.5M+ innovators in the loop. Always free. 100% fresh. No bullsh*t. JOIN FREE ### 100% Free CRM Nurture and grow your business with customer relationship management software. Signup for a free account Close modal ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Juliet Bennett Rylah", "url" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/author/juliet-bennett-rylah" }, "datePublished" : "2022-05-17T06:46:00.000Z", "headline" : "So long, Bolshoi Mak", "image" : [ "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/273011785-HS-News-Brief_2022-05-16T234317.010Z.webp" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/05172022-mcdonalds", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject" } } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "#article", "@type" : "NewsArticle", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Juliet Bennett Rylah", "url" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/juliet-bennett-rylah" }, "dateModified" : "2023-10-11T20:04:56+0000", "datePublished" : "2022-05-17T06:46:00+0000", "headline" : "So long, Bolshoi Mak", "image" : [ "https://7355427.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/7355427/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/273011785-HS-News-Brief_2022-05-16T234317.010Z.webp" ], "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 112, "url" : "https://fs.hubspotusercontent00.net/hubfs/53/assets/hubspot.com/web-team/WBZ/Blog%202021/Images/Logos/HubSpot%20Logo%20112X112.svg", "width" : 112 }, "name" : "HubSpot", "sameAs" : [ "https://www.facebook.com/hubspot", "https://twitter.com/hubspot" ], "url" : "https://www.hubspot.com" }, "speakable" : { "@type" : "SpeakableSpecification", "xPath" : [ "//title", "/html/head/meta[@name='description']/@content" ] } } ```