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When Beijing’s first McDonald’s outlet opened near Tiananmen Square in 1993, about 40,000 people queued round the block to place an order, a sign of the country’s voracious appetite for fast food that would propel China to become the company’s third-biggest market by number of outlets, trailing only the US and Japan.
当北京第一家麦当劳(McDonald’s)餐厅于1993年在天安门广场附近开业时，约有4万人排队等候下订单，这反映了中国对快餐的巨大需求。按餐厅数量计算，这种需求后来推动中国成为该公司第三大市场，仅位列美国和日本之后。
But a quarter of a century later the Golden Arches have lost some of their lustre for Chinese consumers, and amid falling sales McDonald’s on Monday sold control of 2,700 China restaurants to a consortium led by a state-run investor Citic. The $2.1bn deal follows KFC owner Yum Brands’ spin-off of its much larger China operations in October.
但四分之一世纪之后，金色拱门(Golden Arches)失去了对中国消费者的部分吸引力。销售下降之际，麦当劳周一把其对2700家中国餐厅的控制权出售给了一个由国有投资机构中信(Citic)领衔的财团。在这笔21亿美元的交易发生之前，肯德基(KFC)所有者百胜餐饮集团(Yum Brands)于去年10月份拆分了其规模更大的中国业务。
While both groups will continue to receive royalties from Chinese sales, analysts say ceding control of assets and handing decisions to local management will allow the brands to expand more rapidly and localise more nimbly in a crucial market.
虽然这两个集团将继续从中国市场销售收入中收取特许权使用费，但分析师表示，放弃对资产的控制并把决策权交给本地管理层，将使品牌得到更快的扩张，并在关键市场更灵活地实现本地化。
But both new units will struggle to improve the image of US chains. Where once they were perceived as an exotic, upscale choice for dates, business meetings and even weddings, they are now increasingly viewed as mundane. Sales at both groups were also hit after scandals over expired meat in 2014, while ordering apps have spurred increased competition for deliveries.
但两家新实体都将很难改善美国快餐连锁店的形象。它们曾经被认为是适合约会、商务会谈、甚至举行婚礼的一个具有异国情调的高端选择，现在则越来越被视为平凡之所。在2014年的过期肉制品丑闻之后，这两家集团的销售额都受到了冲击，而订餐应用加剧了送餐方面的竞争。
“China has grown out of the American fast food craze,” says Junheng Li, founder and president of New York-based equity research group JL Warren Capital.
“中国已经不再对美国快餐那么着迷，”纽约股票研究集团沃伦资本(JL Warren Capital)的创始人兼总裁李君蘅表示。
KFC’s market share fell to 3.6 per cent in 2015 from 6.4 per cent in 2012, according to Euromonitor, with same-store sales declining in absolute terms. McDonald’s does not separate out its China revenues but said like-for-like sales in the country had fallen almost 2 per cent in the third quarter.
根据欧睿(Euromonitor)的数据，肯德基在中国的市场份额从2012年的6.4%降至2015年的3.6%，同店销售额绝对值有所下降。麦当劳没有把在中国的收入单独列出，但表示中国的同比销售额在第三季度下降了近2%。
China became crucial to both brands, especially for Yum, whose 7,200 KFC and Pizza Hut branches there generated $6.9bn in 2015 — the highest of any region. KFC was seen as a model of overseas management, adapting to local tastes by adding porridge and rice to its menu.
中国对这两个品牌都变得至关重要，尤其是对百胜而言。2015年，百胜旗下7200家肯德基和必胜客(Pizza Hut)餐厅在中国的收入达到69亿美元，是全球所有地区中最高的。肯德基为适应中国当地口味，在在菜单中加入了粥和米饭，被视为海外管理的典范。
McDonald’s China, in which two Citic affiliates will have a 52 per cent stake, with the US private equity firm Carlyle Group taking 28 per cent, is expected to back plans to open 1,500 McDonald's outlets over the next five years, mostly in smaller cities.
麦当劳中国预计将支持未来五年在中国（主要是中小城市）开设1500家餐厅的计划。中信旗下的两家公司将拥有麦当劳中国52%的股权，美国私人股本公司凯雷集团(Carlyle Group)将持股28%。
In such locations “the market is still expanding at a fast rate and western outlets are still highly regarded”, says Kamel Mellahi of Warwick Business School, adding “the franchise model will enable McDonald’s to localise its offerings in China”.
在中小城市，“市场仍在快速扩张并且西方快餐连锁店仍受青睐”，华威商学院(Warwick Business School)的卡梅尔?梅拉伊(Kamel Mellahi)说，“特许经营模式将使麦当劳在中国实现本地化。”
But, says Mr Mellahi, “the franchise brings its own challenges, not least?.?.?.?lack of talent and managerial skills in third and fourth cities and, most of all, loss of control”.
但梅拉伊说，“特许经营也有自己的挑战，特别是……在三四线城市缺乏人才和管理技能，最重要的是失去了控制权”。
Founded in 1979 and best known for investments in property and natural resources, Citic has deep pockets and impeccable political connections but no experience running restaurants. It was attracted to McDonald’s by the opportunity to gain a foothold in one of corporate US’s most iconic brands, according to people close to the deal.
中信集团成立于1979年，以投资房地产和自然资源而闻名，拥有雄厚的财力和无可挑剔的政治关系，但唯独没有经营餐厅的经验。知情人士表示，吸引中信与麦当劳达成交易的，是赢得在美国最具代表性的品牌之一获得立足点的机会。
Under the terms of the 20-year McDonald’s franchise agreement, the new owners are barred from altering management or suppliers for two years, or exiting through a public offering. The FT reported last month that potential buyers including Bain Capital and its Chinese partner had dropped out of the auction over the terms.
根据麦当劳的20年特许经营协议的条款，新所有者在两年内不得更换管理层或供应商，也不得通过上市退出。英国《金融时报》上月曾报道，包括贝恩资本(Bain Capital)及其中国合作伙伴在内的潜在买家，已因为这些条款而退出了竞购。
McDonald’s will receive higher royalty fees from future China operations than the 3 per cent of sales that Yum gains from its spun-off China unit, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange in October, people close to the deal say.
知情人士表示，麦当劳从未来中国业务获得的特许权使用费，将高于百胜集团从其拆分出去的百胜中国获得的净销售额3%的费用。百胜中国于去年11月在纽交所(NYSE)上市。
Yum sold a $460m stake in the China unit to Primavera, a China-focused private equity firm founded by an ex-Goldman Sachs banker, and the finance arm of Chinese internet behemoth Alibaba before the listing. The company said at the time that the proceeds could fund a plan to nearly triple its restaurants in China to 20,000.
百胜中国上市之前，百胜集团向前高盛(Goldman Sachs)银行家创立的、专注于中国市场的私人股本公司春华资本(Primavera Capital)和中国互联网巨头阿里巴巴(Alibaba)旗下的金融子公司出售了百胜中国业务4.6亿美元的股份。该公司当时表示，这笔收入可以用来实行一项把中国餐厅增加近两倍至2万家的计划。
“They are both focusing on franchising which is a more profitable model,” says Jeffrey Towson, a business professor at Peking University. But he likens McDonald’s private equity-style model, which allows for debt-funded expansion, to “Yum China driving a sedan [while] McDonald’s has just upgraded to a Ferrari”.
“他们都专注于特许经营，这是一个更有利可图的模式，”北京大学商学教授杰弗里?陶森(Jeffrey Towson)说。但他这样比喻麦当劳的私人股权模式（允许利用债务融资扩张）：“百胜中国驾驶着一辆轿车（而）麦当劳刚刚升级为法拉利(Ferrari)”。
One challenge both brands face is the rise of mobile apps through which consumers can order food delivery from a range of restaurants. Groups such as Ele.ma and Meituan “are doing to the food sector what [online retailers] Alibaba and JD have done to bricks-and-mortar retail”, says Shaun Rein, managing director of Shanghai-based China Market Research Group.
这两个品牌都面临的一个挑战是移动应用的兴起，消费者可以通过这些应用从一系列餐馆订餐。饿了么(Ele.me)和美团(Meituan)等公司“对餐饮行业的影响，就如同（在线零售商）阿里巴巴和京东(JD)对实体零售业的影响”，上海中国市场研究集团(China Market Research Group)董事总经理雷小山(Shaun Rein)说。
Additional reporting by Don Weinland in Hong Kong
唐?温兰(Don Weinland)香港补充报道
