Mcdonald's Anti-American Culture

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In 2002, McDonald’s sold its last Bolivian Big Mac. This was a part of a global restructuring plan that would not only close locations in Bolivia, locations in seven other countries would close as well. But was this the whole story? Was this sudden exit out of the entire country of Bolivia simply part of McDonald’s global downsizing or did Bolivian culture interfere with the success of the Golden Arches? According to the 2011 documentary, “Por qué quebro McDonalds en Bolivia”, this failure was largely due to cultural differences, political backlash., and economic disparities (McDonalds returns to Bolivia after 13 years, 2015). In the culture of Bolivia, society values the “art of the meal”. Bolivians prefer to spend the little money they have …show more content…

The government of Bolivia is very anti-Western and the elected president, President Evo Morales, also has deep anti-American views. President Morales holds a strong stance against giant U.S food chains and he even included a plea in the United Nations that stood against U.S food chains claiming it is “a threat to humanity” (France-Presse, 2013). The Bolivian government is so anti-western that the clock installed on the constitutional hall in La Paz is anti-clockwise, to oppose western values. President Morales’ views on America and western products prevented McDonald’s from becoming successful. Lastly, there were economic reasons why McDonald’s failed in Bolivia. While McDonald’s is popularly deemed an inexpensive fast food restaurant, Bolivians would not agree. Due to the extreme poverty in Bolivia, compared to local options, McDonald’s prices were expensive and were not competitive. Due to McDonald’s lack of price adjustments, the majority of Bolivians could not afford McDonald’s. Bolivians spent their bolivianos on less expensive hamburgers sold on the …show more content…

In 2014, McDonald’s suffered its worst loss since 2002; net income dropped $935,500 from 2012 to 2015 (NASDAQ, 2016) and sales fell 3.7 percent. When considering where to expand in the franchise market, Bolivia is the only Latin American country to not have the Golden Arches, even Cuba has one, on Guantanamo Bay (Anderson,2015). This also makes economic sense as, according to Exports.gov, the Bolivian economy has grown at an average of 5.6% per year between 2012 and 2015, leading to a dramatic increase in the size and spending of the middle class. And unlike back in 2002, when anti-American sentiment was popularized by President Morales, his new cabinet realizes the impact that foreign direct investment will have on its economy and encourages investment from the US (Doing Business in Bolivia, 2016). But in order for McDonald’s to succeed this time in Bolivia a new strategy must be developed. One that entails selecting great locations, segmenting the tourist and younger populations, localizing the menu to cater to Bolivian tastes and preferences, and developing successful marketing strategies to reach this new market far and

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