McDonald’s failure in Bolivia
People walk past a giant logo of a newly opened McDonald’s on May 1, 2008 in Kaifeng, China.
It's the country that turned its back on McDonald's.
The fast food giant added the traditional llajwa sauce to its classic patties, but still Bolivians weren't conviced.
So after five years, McDonald's closed its eight branches and left the country in 2002.
Now a new documentary, "¿Por qué quebró McDonald's en Bolivia?", explores why McDonald's failed. Filmmaker Fernando Martinez focuses on social and cultural aspects to explain the company's lack of success. "Culture beat a transnational, globalized world," he said.
Watch the trailer below.
And for comparison's sake, here are numbers from the film on McDonald's reach throughout South America, courtesy of the BBC.
- Argentina: 192
- Brazil: 480
- Chile: 55
- Colombia: 97
- Ecuador: 19
- Paraguay: 7
- Peru: 20
- Uruguay: 19
- Venezuela: 180
The story you just read is accessible and free to all because thousands of listeners and readers contribute to our nonprofit newsroom. We go deep to bring you the human-centered international reporting that you know you can trust. To do this work and to do it well, we rely on the support of our listeners. If you appreciated our coverage this year, if there was a story that made you pause or a song that moved you, would you consider making a gift to sustain our work through 2024 and beyond?