中信收购麦当劳中国业务，未来瞄准三四线城市

HONG KONG — McDonald’s said on Monday that it would sell its businesses in mainland China and Hong Kong for $2.08 billion to Citic, a state-owned conglomerate, and the Carlyle Group, a private equity firm.

香港——麦当劳(McDonald’s)周日表示，将把公司在中国大陆和香港的业务以20.8亿美元的价格出售给国有企业集团中信和私募股权公司凯雷集团(Carlyle Group)。

The deal gives Citic and Carlyle franchise rights for 20 years. Citic and its investment arm, Citic Capital, will have a controlling stake of 52 percent, while Carlyle will take 28 percent. McDonald’s will retain the remaining fifth of the company.

这笔交易让中信和凯雷拿到了为期20年的特许经营权。中信及其旗下投资公司中信资本将持有52%的控股权，凯雷则将占股28%。麦当劳将保留其余20%的股权。

“China and Hong Kong represent an enormous growth opportunity for McDonald’s,” Steve Easterbrook, McDonald’s chief executive, said in a news release. “This new partnership will combine one of the world’s most powerful brands and our unparalleled quality standards with partners who have an unmatched understanding of the local markets.”

“中国大陆和香港蕴藏着巨大商机，”麦当劳首席执行官史蒂夫·伊斯特布鲁克(Steve Easterbrook)在一份新闻稿中表示。“麦当劳是全球最知名的品牌之一，也是行业质量标杆。我们的合作伙伴对中国市场有着全面的了解，各方携手能进一步提升竞争力。”

Mr. Easterbrook, who took over in 2015 and set about turning the company around, has seen it regain its financial footing recently, although growth has slowed.

于2015年走马上任并开始带领麦当劳转型的伊斯特布鲁克，近来已经看到公司的财务基础重新变得稳固起来，尽管增长依然颇为缓慢。

The turnaround plan announced involved making 95 percent of its restaurants franchises, including more than 1,750 in China and Hong Kong. McDonald’s operates and franchises more than 2,400 restaurants in mainland China and more than 240 in Hong Kong.

麦当劳公布的转型计划涉及将特许经营门店比例提高到95%，其中包括中国大陆和香港的逾1750家。麦当劳在中国大陆有超过2400家直营和特许经营门店，在香港有超过240家。

McDonald’s opted for a franchise deal to save on investing and modernizing stores itself, according to Ben Cavender, a senior analyst at China Market Research, a consultancy based in Shanghai.

上海的咨询公司中国市场研究集团(China Market Research)高级分析师本·卡文德尔(Ben Cavender)称，麦当劳选择以一项特许经营权交易来省去自行投资和更新门店的麻烦。

“At the end of the day they can make more money,” Mr. Cavender said before the announcement. “They can be more profitable if they are asset light and make money off franchise fees and leave the heavy lifting to somebody else.”

“到头来他们可以赚到更多的钱，”卡文德尔在消息公布前表示。“如果把重担交给其他什么人，让资产变轻，并赚取特许经营费，他们就能有更高的利润率。”

The consortium said it planned to focus on opening new restaurants in third- and fourth-tier cities. For Citic, the investment was seen as a way to tap into rising disposable incomes in China. Chang Zhenming, the chairman of Citic, said the deal was a “strategic opportunity for Citic to invest in the expanding Chinese consumer sector.”

新结成的联盟称，打算把在三四线城市开设新门店作为重点。中国家庭的可支配收入正日益增长，中信希望利用这笔投资从中分得一杯羹。中信董事长常振明表示，此次合作是“中信布局消费领域的一个良好机遇”。

If McDonald’s moved into smaller cities, there could be opportunities for growth, said Joel Silverstein, president of the consultancy East West Hospitality Group.

咨询公司东西友好集团(East West Hospitality Group)总裁乔尔·西尔弗斯坦(Joel Silverstein)说，如果麦当劳向更小的城市进军，可能会有巨大的增长机会。

“McDonald’s definitely has much more developmental potential ahead of it compared to Yum,” Mr. Silverstein said ahead of the announcement, referring to the fast food group that owns KFC and Pizza Hut. “KFC has gone into Tier 3 or 4 cities, where McDonald’s hasn’t expanded nearly to that extent yet.”

“与百盛(Yum)相比，麦当劳显然有着更大的发展潜力，”西尔弗斯坦在消息宣布前表示。百盛是拥有肯德基(KFC)和必胜客(Pizza Hut)的快餐集团。“肯德基已经进入了三四线城市，而麦当劳远没扩张到那种程度。”

In the 1990s, Chinese consumers flocked to Western fast-food chains, drawn to them by their clean bathrooms and air-conditioning — a novelty in China at that time. But since then, restaurants like McDonald’s and KFC have struggled against increasing competition from a boom in quick-service Chinese restaurant chains and a shift toward healthier eating.

上世纪90年代，中国消费者受整洁的卫生间和空调的吸引，纷纷涌入西方快餐连锁店——这些在当时的中国还是新鲜事物。但自那以后，由于中国本土快餐连锁店的繁荣让竞争变得日益竞争，再加上消费者转而寻求更健康的饮食，麦当劳、肯德基之类的餐厅一直在挣扎求存。

Yum split off its Chinese operations into a separate company in 2015, after falling sales and food safety issues. It has struggled to keep up with changing customer tastes and competition from both local and international players.

在销售额不断下降并出现食品安全问题以后，百盛于2015年将其中国业务剥离为一个独立的公司。它一直难以跟上消费者不断变化的口味，也难以应对来自本土和国际同行的竞争。

Still, there was concern about how McDonald’s could expand and retain customers.

不过，人们对麦当劳如何才能扩大消费群体并留住消费者抱有疑虑。

Chinese people are not “great burger eaters to the extent that they like fast food chicken,” Mr. Cavender at China Market Research said.

中国市场研究集团的卡文德尔说，“和汉堡包相比”，中国人“更爱吃快餐鸡肉”。