Fewer people want to eat at Walmart.
For years Walmart Inc. and major restaurant chains such as McDonald’s Corp. they enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship. The retailer delivered a steady stream of meals, and the restaurants offered rental profits and a reason for shoppers to stay around the shops.
These bonds have crumbled as more shopping has taken place online, and fast-food restaurants are more dependent on sales windows, a feature that Walmart locations do not have. The pandemic has made the indoor mass unattractive – or banned – for many buyers, accelerating division.
McDonald’s is closing hundreds of restaurants located in the largest stores of American retailers, the last vestiges of a 30-year-old experiment between companies. About 150 McDonald’s stores will remain in US Walmart locations after another wave of planned closures expected to be completed by this summer, according to the burger giant. At the top of the partnership, there were about 1,000 McDonald’s restaurants in Walmart stores.
Subway franchisees, one of the largest fast food chains in the world with locations in Walmart stores, also say they are closing locations this year, citing reduced walking traffic and lower profits.