How does the saying go? The three most important things about real estate are:Location,Location,Location. But what if that location is historic and beautiful,artistic and romantic? Is it the right place for a big brand? Take Piazza della Rotonda in Roma for instance (home to the Pantheon.) From a financial standpoint a place like this would seem like a no-brainer (high traffic,tourists,people ready to spend some$$.) But do you really want to stand next to the Pantheon and see a McDonald’s? It may generate lots of income for McDonald’s but I imagine it generates more than its share of resentment as well (me included.) Maybe if you’re a brand like McDonald’s you’ve probably generated so much resentment along the way that a little more just doesn’t matter? but it should matter and in my opinion it’s culturally irresponsible. All brands have a story and a brand message to support that story. If you talk to any brand manager,they’ll tell you that anything that doesn’t jive with their brand message and story is something they won’t consider…and that makes sense. Brands aren’t the only ones with a story or a message however…and McDonald’s just doesn’t jive with Piazza della Rotonda and the Pantheon’s brand story.
McDonald’s in Piazza della Rotonda,Roma (photo credit:A.Currell on flickr)
Maybe they should open a drive thru Starbucks for vespas IN the Pantheon!! $$cha-ching$$!! Location,Location,Location! Then again,the Dunkin Doughnuts that used to be in Piazza di Trevi (Trevi Fountain) has since closed (thank God)…maybe it’s not such a good idea.
Joe,the ad for €6 Big Macs in the Piazza della Rotonda made me hate McD’s more than I already had…which is an achievement in itself.
I’m with you –they should have ITALIAN restaurants only in this piazza –not mcD’s.
Things change. This is not for me,but it’s not about me. It’s about money. Sigh.
Must say –it doesn’t look much like McD’s,or maybe there’s a gigantic yellow ‘M’just out of shot.
I think it’s insane. I do remember seeing that Dunkin Donuts on my first trip to Rome. And I couldn’t help but thinking…how odd. With such wonderful food all around you why would anyone want to eat at any big brand.
I agree. MickyDs on Via del Corso or Vittorio Emmanuele? Fine but across from the Pantheon?! I don’t get it.
I’m with Food Hunter and the others. It’s very odd that in a country rightly famed for its cuisine McDs should be so successful.
Still,at least the one in the photo does try to fit in with its surroundings.
And as with many McDs in Italy,the one in the centre of Rome does seem to be doing fine.
Strange.
Best,
Alex
Amy and I have remarked on this McD’s each time we’ve seen it. It certainly is a shameful way of taking advantage of the tourists visiting the pantheon,and even though they do make attempts (probably required by the city planning commission) to disguise the fact that it’s a horrible chain restaurant with no large exterior sign and a giant bougainvilla climbing the wall,I suspect the reason that it’s there is because the owner of the building can guarantee himself (or his management company) a higher and more reliable rental income from McD’s than from a smaller,mom and pop/non-chain business.
However,the real shameful thing about it is that tourists frequent it. There are literally thousands of wonderful,atmospheric and historic cafes in Rome (along with some enjoyably down-at-heel,slightly sweaty ones too) to choose from,so why would you drink shitty McDonald’s coffee even if you can enjoy a view of the Pantheon,when you can drink great espresso with indescribably good crema somewhere that doesn’t make you feel like a tool?
Moreover,who are these people who do this? I think there are two audiences. At the Pantheon McD’s it’s definitely close-minded tourists who are worried about getting off the beaten track by having to look for a cafe not directly opposite a main site. In the rest of the country,it’s almost certainly locals. Having grown up in the provinces of the UK,we didn’t have McDonald’s until I was about ten,and when one opened in a town nearby,it was a strange kind of foreign food that it was exciting and somehow a treat to go and eat,once or twice a year. There still aren’t McDonald’s or any fast food chains in the same numbers as America,and I don’t know for sure,but I would guess that the enduring popularity of McDonald’s in Britain,Italy and elsewhere in Europe relies much less on the quality of the food etc than it does on the branding of it and the association of eating it with something that’s foreign and,somehow,exciting.
Hey! Glad you liked my photo enough to use it!
Good points,but I wasn’t bothered by this,although I was very happy that it was so subtle.
I was here again this past May,and although €6 is steep for a Big Mac,the prices of the “Mom &Pops”in this square sent us scuttling to a square less touristy and cheaper.
I spend about 4 to 5 weeks a year in Europe,and sometimes the ‘big brands’are a balm,(the McDonald’s near the Stephansdom has the coldest beer in Vienna,a pleasure after a long day of hoofing it). I rarely eat at McDonald’s at home,and Europe is the only place I ever get a Pizza Hut Pan Pizza,as there isn’t one available inside the Baltimore Beltway. I love the food in Italy,in Europe-the art,the culture,but sometimes it’s nice to step back and have Big Mac and read People.
This McDonald’s is no more.