麥當勞本地化戰略(英漢對照)

■ 看金融時報學英文 By the time winter starts to arrive again across China this year, diners at the roughly 800 McDonald's restaurants open in the country by then will notice some-thing different on the menu: rice burgers. 今年冬季再度來臨時，在麥當勞遍布中國的約800家分店用餐的人們會注意到，點菜單上將出現一種不同品種：米漢堡。 The task of devising food for local palates has moved centre stage for the world's largest fast food chain as it ex-pands into emerging markets such as Chi-na. It is also addressing a proliferation of tastes and incomes among consumers in mature markets. Three weeks ago, Mc-Donald's started testing four soups in Portugal. There are plans for pasta in Australia. 作為全球最大的速食連鎖店，麥當勞正向中國等新興市場拓展、設計符合當地口味的食物，這已改變了公司的核心戰略。同時，它還要解決成熟市場消費者口味和收入趨於多樣化的問題。三周前，麥當勞開始在葡萄牙試著推出四種湯，並且計劃在澳洲推出義大利麵食。 For a fast food chain that operates in 118 countries,offering locally appealing food beyond its core menu of burgers and fries is not new. But the current drive is about more than one-off alter-ations to the menu. It is a systematic approach to localisation that is prompt-ing changes ranging from the design of kitchens to how the company manages its regional businesses. 對於一家在118個國家開展業務的速食連鎖公司而言，在提供漢堡和炸薯條等主菜單外提供本土風味食品，並不是什麼新鮮事。但是，現在所做的不只是一次性地修改菜單。而是系統性的本土化措施，推動著從廚房設計到地區性業務管理等種種變化。 Significantly, McDonald's country heads for Europe and Asia have in the last six months moved to be based in their re-gions, not at company headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois. 引人注目的是，在過去六個月內，麥當勞歐亞各國的主管都駐紮到各所屬地區，而不是在美國伊利諾斯州奧克布魯克的公司總部工作。 "McDonald's was built on a strong foundation of a core menu that we took around the world but we need to make sure we are more locally relevant," says Ken Koziol, vice-president of world wide restaurant innovation."Taste profiles and desires are changing." 「麥當勞是建立在主要菜單的強大基礎之上的，我們把主菜單帶到了全球各地，但我們現在需要確保適合當地情況。」負責全球餐廳創新的副總裁肯．科齊奧爾宣稱，「人們的口味和興趣在變化。」 Faith Popkorn, chief executive of BrainReserve, a brand specialist, says the days of "hero worship" of American cui-sine are over. "A brand had better start to make friends with the culture it's in, because that's the only way to weave its story in." 專業品牌公司BrainReserve執行長費思‧波普科恩表示，對美國式烹飪風格「頂禮膜拜」的時代已經過去。「一個品牌最好與其置身其中的文化相適應，因為這是唯一的融入方式。」 Others argue that the attempt to show more of a local face around the world poses a challenge to the way McDonald's manages its brand, long perceived as a global icon whose survival has depended on maintaining trust with a mass of con-sumers interested in a familiar core menu. 其他人則表示，嘗試在全球各地展示更多的本土特色，是對麥當勞品牌經營方式的一種挑戰。長期以來，麥當勞被認為是一個全球性品牌，之所以能夠生存下來，就是依靠大批顧客的信任度———他們熱中於熟悉的主菜單。 Lovers - and haters - of fast food have for decades known the Golden Arches as the global flag carrier for convenience eat-ing, US - style. Simon Anholt, a British author and founder of Nations Brand Index, a quarterly global survey of countries as brands, says the increasing localisation of McDonald's menus may end up being counter-productive. 幾十年來，無論熱愛還是討厭速食的人都知道金色拱門代表的是美式全球速食業旗艦店的標誌。英國作家及各國品牌指數創始人西蒙‧安霍爾特宣稱，麥當勞主菜單的不斷本土化，最終可能會適得其反。各國品牌指數是一項對各國品牌進行的每季全球調查。 "By putting local food on the menu all you are doing is removing the logic of the brand, because this is an American brand. If McDonald's serves what you think is a poor imitation of your local cuisine, it's going to be an insult," he says. 他說：「將當地食品納入菜單，你無異於在抹殺品牌的邏輯性，因為這是一個美國品牌。如果麥當勞所提供的食品讓你覺得是本地烹飪風格的蹩腳複製品，那將是一種羞辱。」 He suggests a better strategy would be similar to one adopted by soft drinks group Coca-Cola, which has made a virtue out of buying local drinks companies as a way of making itself more locally appealing, with-out emblazoning its name or logo on such products. 他所建議的更好策略是類似於軟性飲料集團可口可樂公司所採取的策略。該集團的優點是：通過收購當地飲料公司，增加自己在當地的吸引力，而無需在此類產品上印上自己的名字或標識。 Yet the company believes it is possible to be global and local at the same time. Mary Dillon, chief marketing manager, says: "The business at McDonald' s is much more about local relevance than a global archetype. Globally we think of ourselves as the custodian of the brand but it's all about relevance to the local markets." 不過，麥當勞相信有能力兼顧全球化和本土化。行銷長瑪麗‧狄倫表示：「麥當勞業務更多是關於當地性，而不是全球性的。從全球角度看，我們自認為是品牌的管理者，但一切都與當地市場關連性有關。」 （本文摘自培生出版《讀金融時報學英文3—深度評論》） 【2006/09/17 經濟日報】