McDonald’s is sticking to its New Year’s resolution to cut back in 2015.
The burger chain is laying off 63 people at its company headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., following a long sales slump that has left McDonald’s scrambling for solutions. One fix: redirecting nearly $100 million through cost-cutting efforts.
“McDonald’s is moving with a sense of urgency to improve our financial performance by taking actions based on the long term,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “This includes a diligent review of our corporate home office and McDonald’s USA’s structures and resources in order to redirect nearly $100 million in savings toward business priorities, such as digital and new restaurant platforms that will support our key growth drivers.”
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The digital and new restaurant platforms presumably include the “Create Your Taste” platform, which is expanding from a limited test and rolling out to 2,000 McDonald’s locations in 2015. The customized burger and chicken sandwich platform allows customers to order customizable, high-quality (and more expensive) burgers and sandwiches using digital kiosks – a fast-casual touch for the fast-food giant.
Other changes at McDonald’s include cutting eight items from the menu and simplifying ingredients. Hopefully, these cost-cutting and quality-enhancing efforts will help McDonald’s turn around its dismal sales in 2015. As of the chain’s last monthly earning report in November, McDonald’s had not experienced any growth in U.S. sales in more than a year.
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