And it looks like the decision to parachute him into Shanghai is paying off, with the fast food brand finally making headlines for all the right reasons in the Middle Kingdom.
Rewind the clock two years, and the story reads rather differently. A stumbling McDonald’s endured nationwide censure for a begging ad deemed offensive and continued to lag behind key rival Yum Brands’ KFC. Rosen entered the market as part of a management overhaul that also installed new CEO Jeffrey Schwartz, and replaced Shantel Wong, who shifted to a new role overseeing McDonald’s 2008 Olympics programme.
While competition — from Yum and more traditional options alike — remains fierce, McDonald’s has the feel of a brand moving in the right direction. And much of this stems from a decision to embrace its heritage, rather than piggyback on the flavour of the month in the Middle Kingdom. For Rosen, this means that consumers need no longer wonder where the beef is. After years of looking to grow via Chinese consumers’ traditional preference for chicken, McDonald’s has decided to focus on what it does best across the globe.
“The marketing for McDonald’s in China is about telling part of our story; it’s been a strategic shift,” says Rosen. “It’s about who we are as a brand and our core equity: beef. That’s who we are as a company, and that’s part of our heritage.”
Rosen is described by one industry observer as “a breath of fresh air for McDonald’s China”, but he is far too savvy to overtly criticise McDonald’s prior strategic missteps in the Middle Kingdom. “My predecessors were trying to compete in what was unchartered territory,” he notes. “What we’ve learned is there is a time and place for new products, for promotional activity, and recognising how that activity is going to play out with the consumer is vital.”
Rosen believes that the only way McDonald’s China will thrive is by remaining true to its roots. “We’ve turned a huge corner in China, because we found out the drivers and the appropriateness of where the McDonald’s brand fits, in in the life of China,” he says.
“We are a Western brand and we are respected for being an alternative food option for people in China. We are not going to try to be a Chinese restaurant.”
Rosen knows a thing or two about American brands, specifically iconic ones. Prior to joining McDonald’s in 2001, he spent over five years at the Walt Disney Company where, among other things, he launched Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings at Walt Disney World. Overseeing all of McDonald’s China’s marcomms, Government relations and research marks a pretty far cry from his first business selling tuxedos in Florida, but the American appears unlikely to be seduced by the bright lights anytime soon. Instead, Rosen preaches a mantra that is less localisation and more about discipline. “That’s a strategic shift and it’s paid off,” he explains. “Most marketing people want to do what’s new — the sexy thing.”
Despite this aversion to glamour, Rosen’s watershed moment at McDonald’s must be the brand’s splashy Quarter Pounder campaign last year, which pushed more than a few boundaries through creative executions that promoted beef via an obvious sexual theme. Rosen admits the campaign marked “a personal milestone”, but is correspondingly quick to note a heavy education component behind the push, to build awareness of beef’s health benefits in a relatively nascent marketplace.
“It was definitely a moment in time for McDonald’s and my career,” says Rosen. “People dream about that. I tell the team — stop and take the wins, pause and enjoy the excitement we have caused.”
After almost two years of focus and discipline, perhaps Rosen is ready to loosen the reins a little bit. An upcoming push will ask consumers to create their own TVCs, and Rosen seems invigorated by the interplay of ideas that are being generated by his three key agencies: new digital incumbent Tribal DDB, longtime global partner Leo Burnett and TBWA, which McDonald’s added to its China roster one year ago.
“I’m a believer in sharing work,” he explains. “It not only challenges the agencies but you as a client, because it makes you rethink and challenge your own mindset.”
Gary Rosen's CV
2005 VP, chief marketing and corporate affairs officer, McDonald’s China
2001 Director of global marketing, McDonald’s
1995 Manager of international marketing, Disney’s Parks and Resorts
