McCafé

As in other countries, China enjoys a few McCafés.

This one, in the trendy Xin Tian Di area of Shanghai, offers a simple menu of teas, hot chocolate, coffee, cappucchino, latte, espresso, smoothie, and juice. Not seen on the menu are the few simple snacks that are offered in the case off to the side.

The McChronicles observed a few McCafés and found them all to be neat, clean, and fast.

According to bizjournals, in a 2001 release "McCafe was first introduced in Australia in 1993 and has become a successful enterprise in 17 countries with almost 300 McCafes worldwide. McDonald's is introducing McCafe for the first time in the U.S., making this the 18th country to debut the concept. All McCafes are within or adjacent to existing full-service traditional McDonald's restaurants. "

We wonder if this is getting too far removed from the core McDonald's brand or if it is an excellent marketing move. Only time will tell. We do know that the McCafé was analyzed by no less than the fine people at Harvard. Find their 2004 report at Harvard Business Online.

Image: McChronicles