McDonald's reopens in Russia as 'Vkusno i tochka'

By Team Newsable | First Published Jun 12, 2022, 6:57 PM IST

"The new name is Vkusno I tochka," said Oleg Paroyev, the new group's director-general.

Former McDonald's restaurants in Russia have been renamed "Vkusno I tochka" ("Delicious. Period.") ahead of their grand reopening later on Sunday, as per the new owner.

"The new name is Vkusno I tochka," said Oleg Paroyev, the new group's director-general, at a press conference in Moscow.

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The restaurant on Moscow's Pushkin Square, where the very first McDonald's opened its doors to long lines and great fanfare in January 1990, was set to reopen at noon with a new logo to replace the Golden Arches (09:00 GMT).

On May 16, the US fast-food corporation McDonald's announced its departure from Russia in response to Moscow's Ukraine war.

Three days later, Russian businessman Alexander Govor, a licensee of the chain, purchased the 850-restaurant operation.

"I am very proud of the honour that developing this business has bestowed upon me," Govor said on Sunday. "I am ambitious and intend to develop new restaurants in addition to opening the 850."

According to McDonald's, Govor agreed to retain employees for at least two years and fund exiting liabilities to suppliers, landlords, and utilities under the terms of the sale.

The transaction price was not disclosed, but while announcing its departure, McDonald's stated that it planned to take a one-time charge of $1.2 billion to $1.4 billion to write off the investment. Nearly 62,000 people were employed by McDonald's in Russia.

Govor, a licensee since 2015, has 25 Siberian restaurants. He is a co-founder of the refining company Neftekhimservice and a board member of a company that owns the Park Inn hotel and private clinics in Siberia.

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