Ray Kroc- McDonalds
Although Raymond Albert Kroc or Ray Kroc (born October 5, 1902 and died January 14, 1984) did not start the fast food chain McDonalds he nevertheless was responsible for making it what it is today. The founders of McDonalds namely Richard and Maurice McDonald were not so keen in making McDonalds a fast food giant and satisfied with what they have accomplished at their age.
Richard and Maurice McDonald’s pioneered ideas about new restaurant concepts which later were compiled to create the beginnings of the fast food restaurant concept we know today and copied by many fast food companies globally. They had a hard life early on in life and now that they are old just want to keep the status quo and enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Ray Kroc was different. He was over 50 years old when he stumbled on the McDonalds business model and had nothing comparable in his own life he nevertheless saw the big potential in what the McDonalds brothers have. He saw his big success in what the brothers have created.
Let us look at the life of Ray Kroc. His father was an immigrant in America who made his fortune in the stock market only to lose it all during the great stock market crash of 1929. His father then worked as a superintendent. His father who is an immigrant and a stock market investor was evidently a risk taker which may have affected Ray Kroc.
During World War 1 he lied about his age to become a Red Cross Ambulance Driver at the age of 15 years old unknowingly alongside Walt Disney the founder of the world renown Animation and Entertainment Company. The war however ended shortly after he enlisted. From his actions we can already see the drive of Ray Kroc to go after what he wants even at an early age when most have not matured yet.
During the Great Depression in the US he worked in a variety of jobs selling various items such as papers cups and real estate. At times he would work as a pianist in bands. As can be seen he goes after jobs which are considered very difficult but could be very financially rewarding which is sales.
After World War 2 ended he found work as a milkshake mixer salesman but when the company floundered he began to think of alternatives. He got word about the good business the McDonalds brothers were doing when they bought 8 of his multi-mixers. He decided to visit them in 1954 and from there saw the potential of the business of the McDonalds brothers.
In 1955 Ray Kroc opened the first restaurant he franchised under his partnership with the McDonald brothers. The employees at the restaurant saw how dedicated he was when he would come to visit the store earlier than most and leave almost the latest at night. He also helped out the employees whenever he can.
One thing of note was that even though he would come in a business suit he would not be ashamed to roll up his sleeves and mop the floors. When asked about why he did this he said he wanted to inspire the employees of the store to care for the store as much as he cared about it and to see its great potential.
Kroc himself improved on the innovations of the McDonalds brothers when the company became really widely known and extended nationally. One of the best of these was his policy of selling only single store franchises as against the more popular policy of the time of territorial franchises. This enabled him to have more restaurant control of each individual franchisees.
There are many policies that Ray Kroc introduced and more can be found in his Wikipedia article titled Ray Kroc. Though this article contains a lot of information about him it is also helpful to read other articles about his controversial business tactics and personal life including Ray Kroc’s own book titled Grinding It Out available in Amazon.com
One thing is for sure though is his obsession to mold the McDonalds company into his vision of it. That is why he made sure he can exert a lot of his ways and policies to his franchisees even though he may lose some money in the process. An example of this was when he refused to have cheaper fillings replace the fillings in McDonald’s burger patties.
He also instilled strict quality controls especially in the area of hygiene to his franchises. McDonalds restaurants are so well maintained hygienically and they have a reputation for this. They inspired other fast food companies to follow their lead knowing that this positive image is good for their bottom line and to the customers as well.
Ray Kroc has a notorious bad image in the supposedly bad way he treated the McDonalds brothers. A movie even portrayed this. The movie is called the The Founder yet there is little story of the McDonalds brothers confronting him. The McDonalds brothers grew rich out of their partnership with Ray Kroc.
They could have made multiples of what they earned out of the partnership if only they negotiated better with Ray Kroc. One thing is sure is that Ray Kroc is a better negotiator than the McDonalds brothers and the proof is that they were not able to seriously challenge him in court if ever they wanted to.
One thing is sure. Ray Kroc never found his big dream until he was way past 50 years old. Once he found it however it became the purpose of his life. Whatever his motives are for chasing this dream whether fame, fortune or to have a sense of accomplishment he gave it his best shot and never refused the risk and the hard work to chase his dream even as an old man.