People lineup to visit a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The sign reads 'The Name Changes, Love Remains'. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Staff members wait for visitors at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Staff members wait for visitors at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Visitors order food at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Businessman Alexander Govor, owner of the Vkusno i Tochka fast food chain and founder of the GiD company, looks on at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Kitchen staff members work at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
A staff member speaks with visitors at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Staff members are at work at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Kitchen staff work at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Staff members look at a cash desk at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Kitchen staff work at a newly opened fast food restaurant in a former McDonald's outlet in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, June 12, 2022. The first of former McDonald's restaurants is reopened with new branding in Moscow. The corporation sold its branches in Russia to one of its local licensees after Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)MOSCOW (AP) — Three months after McDonald's suspended operations in Russia, hundreds of people streamed into its famous former outlet on Moscow's Pushkin Square as the restaurant reopened Sunday under a Russian owner and a new name.
In March, McDonald's halted operations of its company-run restaurants in Russia. Although some run by franchisees stayed open, the action by the multinational fast-food chain was among the most visible responses by foreign companies to Russia sending troops into Ukraine.
Two months later, McDonald's decided to leave Russia altogether and sold its 850 restaurants to Alexander Govor, who held licenses for 25 franchises in Siberia.
Govor is moving fast to reopen the shuttered outlets. It wasn't until a couple of hours before the Pushkin Square restaurant opened that the Russian chain's new name was announced: Vkusno-i Tochka (Tasty-period).
The logo is different, but still evokes the golden arches: a circle and two yellow oblongs — representing a beef patty and french fries — configured into a stylized M.
Fifteen of the former McDonald's were set to reopen in Moscow on Sunday. Oleg Paroev, the chain's general director, said he aims to have 200 open by the end of the month.
As part of the sales deal, whose monetary terms were not announced, the new operation agreed to retain all 62,000 people employed by McDonald's prior to its exit.
The crowd at the Pushkin Square outlet, however sizable and lively, was no match for the turnout for the McDonald's opening in 1990, when people waited in line for hours. At that time, McDonald's had psychological and political resonance beyond hamburgers.
The opening was the first taste most Muscovites had of Western consumerism and service efficiency, as well as a sign the Soviet Union was slowly dropping its guard and allowing foreign culture into the country.
On Sunday, that earlier symbolism echoed through Sunday's reopening with a note of nostalgia.
“This is a historic place — the flagship of McDonald's,” Govor told reporters. “I'm sure it will be the flagship for us.”
Inside, the restaurant resembled a fraternal twin of its former self. There were touchscreens for placing orders and counter workers wearing familiar polo-shirt uniforms.
“We're sure that our customers won't notice a difference between us,” Paroev said. However, he said, the company will seek a new soft drinks supplier as it has limited stocks of Coca-Cola.
___
Follow AP's coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Before you make your next trade, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis.
Our team has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and none of the big name stocks were on the list.
They believe these five stocks are the five best companies for investors to buy now...
See The Five Stocks Here
MarketBeat has just released its list of 20 stocks that Wall Street analysts hate. These companies may appear to have good fundamentals, but top analysts smell something seriously rotten. Are any of these companies lurking around your portfolio? Find out by clicking the link below.
Get This Free Report
