McDonalds 2000 Annual Report Download - page 3

Dear shareholders,
Letter to shareholders 1
...constant currency
net income per
common share
increased 10 percent
on Systemwide sales
that surpassed the
$40 billion mark for
the first time in our
history.
I’ll begin this annual letter
by thanking you, our share-
holders, for investing in
McDonald’s. Your faith in our
future and your confidence in
our brand are deeply appreci-
ated. We are committed to making each and
every one of you look exceedingly wise from an
investment point of view as we pursue our vision
to be the world’s best quick-service restaurant
experience. We want you to own shares of
McDonald’s over the long term, and we know
the only way this will happen is through the long-
term growth of our business in ways that not
only meet your expectations—but exceed them.
I’d like to outline what, I believe, are your
expectations...
First, and obviously, you expect strong finan-
cial results. Next, you look for leadership, the kind
that keeps a business fresh and at the cutting
edge. Finally, you increasingly expect the compa-
nies in which you invest to connect with your
values and to demonstrate social responsibility.
Over the years, McDonald’s track record
has stood up well against each of these broad
expectations.
In the area of financial performance,
McDonald’s has consistently delivered record
annual earnings* in our 35 years as a public
company.
On the leadership front, we have a heritage of
creating and executing strategies that leave the
competition trailing well behind. Our System’s
leadership—owner/operators, suppliers and
Company employees—has created a remark-
able history of innovation in menu, brand
building, technology, operations and restaurant
development.
In the area of social responsibility, McDonald’s
commitment to giving back to communities is as
old as the brand itself. Clearly, it is the right thing
to do. Nevertheless, we are pleased with the
ongoing recognition we receive for our efforts and
are proud of the trust we build with customers
and their communities. In fact, I believe that by
doing the right thing, we enhance the loyalty and
affection customers have toward our brand.
Looking back over 2000, how did McDonald’s
perform against this set of expectations?
Financially, our global food service business
performed well despite challenges. In Europe,
there were the well-reported currency issues
throughout the year and later in the year there
were consumer concerns related to BSE—or
mad cow disease—in the beef supply in certain
European markets. And Asia and Latin America
faced continuing economic downturns.
Nevertheless, constant currency net income
per common share increased 10 percent on
Systemwide sales that surpassed the $40 billion
mark for the first time in our history. We added
1,606 McDonald’s restaurants, and with the
successful completion of our Boston Market
acquisition, we added 792 restaurants under our
Other Brands. At year-end 2000, we operated
28,707 restaurants in 120 countries. In all, we
served nearly 1 billion additional customers, for
a total of 16.5 billion customer visits.
*Excluding 1998 Made For You costs
and the 1998 special charge.