Leaders from Northern Ireland’s agri-food, sporting and community sectors, including Minister for Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs, Edwin Poots, gathered for a breakfast hosted by McDonald’s UK and Ireland at a newly reopened restaurant.
Guests at the event, which took place in a McDonald’s restaurant on Boucher Road, heard Poots talk about McDonald’s contributions to the Northern Irish economy.
“I congratulate McDonald’s on its continued investment in innovation, particularly in the use of digital technology as part of its ‘Convenience of the Future’ restaurant development plans, as seen at the Boucher Road restaurant today,” he said.
“This ongoing investment, together with the long-standing relationship between McDonald’s and our agri-food industry, bodes well for the future.”
McDonald’s UK and Ireland currently operates 33 restaurants across Northern Ireland – all run by seven local franchisees who collectively employ over 3,300 crew members directly.
The Boucher Road restaurant is the latest to have undergone a major refurbishment as part of the nationwide ‘Convenience of the Future’ programme, which will see McDonald’s invest £250million in the redesign of 800 of its restaurants over the next four years.
Sarah Carter, McDonald’s vice president operations North, McDonald’s UK and Ireland, told guests that the investment programme is underpinned by McDonald’s belief that it must continue to invest to grow.
“Our customers here in Northern Ireland, and right across our UK and Ireland business, rightly expect to have choice in how and where they order and collect their food,” she said.
“Our job is to ensure that every experience is a great one.”
According to Carter, the investment in the customer experience is already seeing McDonald’s shake up the way its restaurants operate to reflect the increasingly diverse ways that its customers can order their food.
The vice president said that traditional walk-ins and their well-known Drive Thru system would still be in use, but that they were aiming to make digital sales channels, like the McDonald’s app, more integrated into the way the McDonald’s kitchen is run.
“Our customers are increasingly looking for greater speed, efficiency and choice in how they order their food,” she said.
“This £250million investment in the customer experience not only addresses how they are ordering now but provides us with a platform to continue to adapt and innovate further in the future.”
