McDonald's China changes its name to 'Jingongmen'

▲

Click 'CHINADAILY' above to follow us

Chinese media reported on Wednesday evening that McDonald's Chinese business changed its company's name from Maidanglao to Jingongmen, or Golden Arches, on Oct 12.

Although the fast food chain reassured its fans on its Weibo microblog that stores in China will still bear the old name, the new moniker was immediately ridiculed by net users for sounding unsophisticated.

"Jingongmen sounds like a name for a Peking duck restaurant or a traditional Chinese medicine store," one Weibo user wrote, suggesting the company add "time-honored brand" to double down on the new name's old-fashioned connotations.

McDonald's low-key name change came after the fast food chain sold the bulk of its Chinese mainland and Hong Kong business to financial conglomerate CITIC Group and American investment company Carlyle Capital in January.

Read more: McDonald's looks for partners to spread its wings in China

McDonald's opened its first restaurant in Shenzhen on Oct 8, 1990, and the brand, closely associated with a Western lifestyle, took off. Long lines formed whenever a new location opened. 

However, in recent years the fast food chain has struggled to maintain its growth momentum in China as more prosperous, health-conscious consumers seek alternative dining options.

▲ The McDonald's Restaurant USA No 1 Store Museum in Des Plaines, Illinois

History behind McDonald's golden arches

The original architect of McDonald's in the early 1950s was designed with two arches, shaped like semicircles on each side. 

The design grabbed the attention of hungry drivers who could be convinced to pull over and buy a quick burger.

By the late 1960s, McDonald's had ditched the two-arch design, with the golden arches appearing instead on signs. 

McDonald's was swiftly franchising across the US at that time, using the golden arches as a logo, not as an architectural instruction.

As the arches have become immediately recognizable, there have been instances in which McDonald's has allowed differences in color at local restaurants. 

In Sedona, Arizona, the arches are turquoise, to avoid clashing with the surrounding environment. 

In Monterey, California, the arches are black, as part of a compromise with the city to create a more "sophisticated" look.

There have been small aesthetic shifts over the years, to make the arches taller or thicker, or to change the shading, but for the most part the arches have remained the same. 

Across the world, the golden arches mean one thing: McDonald's.

Jingongmen, are you lovin'it?

Sources: Business Insider, Six Tone

Editor: Zhang Xi

You may also like