1950s

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History

By the mid-1950s the original McDonald's generated $350,000 a year in revenues. In 1954 Ray Kroc, then a 52-year-old salesman of milkshake machines, visited the restaurant and became convinced that its concept could work in other cities. The McDonald brothers agreed to let Kroc sell McDonald's franchises (the right to market the company's products within a certain area). In 1955 Kroc established a franchising company known as McDonald's Systems, Inc. and opened a second McDonald's restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois. Within its first four years, the company had opened 228 restaurants, which generated $37.6 million in annual sales. In 1961 Kroc bought out the McDonald brothers for $2.7 million. [CONTINUE]

"McDonald's Corporation," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2007