CosMc's

Last updated

CosMc's
Company type Subsidiary
Industry Fast-food restaurant
FoundedDecember 7, 2023;14 months ago (2023-12-07)
Bolingbrook, Illinois, U.S. [1]
Headquarters Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Number of locations
7 [2]
Area served
Illinois, Texas
Key people
 Chris Kempczinski (CEO)
Products
  • iced tea
  • lemonade
  • coffee
  • frappé coffee
  • slushes
  • sandwiches
  • baked goods
  • ice cream
  • soda
Parent McDonald's
Website cosmcs.com

CosMc's [a] is an American concept fast food restaurant and spinoff brand by McDonald's. [4] Its menu focuses on hot and cold specialty drinks. [5] It launched on December 7, 2023, with a drive-thru only location in the Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook, Illinois. Nine locations were planned to open in Texas in 2024. [2] CosMc's offers McCafe products, some of which also available at McDonalds locations, alongside exclusive drinks and food.

Contents

History

Background

The name CosMc originated as a McDonaldland character, appearing in McDonald's advertisements from 1986 to 1992. [6] CosMc is an extraterrestrial who "craves McDonald's food." [4] [7] The character occasionally came to steal food for his planet, CosMcland. It also spoke in a mixture of robot-esque sounds and normal speech. [8] In the 1990s, McDonald's tried to expand its business by buying Donatos Pizza, Boston Market, and a stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill, but within a decade had sold them off. [9]

In 2023, McDonald's started focusing more on its classic mascots and the Grimace Birthday Meal became a viral Internet phenomenon. [4] [9] The specialty coffee-selling business has been growing, which McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski describes as an "attractive and fast growing category". CNN described CosMc's as McDonald's "answer to Starbucks." [10]

Launch

The chain was announced in July 2023. [9] The first CosMc's store opened on December 7, 2023 in the village of Bolingbrook, Illinois. [11] The opening day saw a large queue of customers in the drive-thru which was the only way to order through the restaurant. [11] CNN reported that the Bolingbrook location saw more than twice the number of visits for a typical McDonald's location, citing data from Placer.ai, with the customer base largely skewed to those aged 22-29. [12]

At the time of launch, McDonald's planned to have ten operational stores, including nine in Texas by 2024. [7] McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski said that the company would evaluate the ten stores as a "limited test”, adding "Let's not get too excited." [13] In its first month, the store reportedly had twice the traffic of a regular McDonald's. [14]

A new app and rewards program, CosMc’s Club, along with mobile ordering, was introduced in May 2024. [15]

In 2025, the company announced it would close three of its larger format locations and open two smaller locations in Texas. [16]

Operations

CosMc's is intended to sell afternoon snacks and hot and cold drinks, and has been seen as an attempt by McDonald's to enter the United States coffee market [5] and the growing market for drive-thru beverages. [13]

CosMc's outlets will have a smaller footprint than a regular McDonald's. [4] CosMc's will sell food "aimed at people with a very sweet tooth." [7] It will sell a range of products that are not sold at McDonald's, such as 10 new beverages. [17] It will also sell some foods available at McDonald's, such as the Egg McMuffin. [7] The first CosMc's shop has four drive thrus. [18]

Design

CosMc's buildings are colored deep violet and have yellow graphics. [18]

Notes

  1. ↑ Pronounced "cosmics" [3]

References

  1. ↑ "McDonald's announces CosMc's spin-off restaurant opens this week in Bolingbrook, shares menu details". ABC 7 Chicago. December 6, 2023. Archived from the original on December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Our Locations". CosMc's. December 6, 2024. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  3. ↑ Lai, Amanda (December 8, 2023). "First Look at CosMc's, the New Spinoff Concept from McDonald's". McMillanDoolittle. Archived from the original on December 9, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Lucas, Amelia (December 6, 2023). "McDonald's to open first CosMc's spinoff restaurant this week". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "McDonald's unveils US CosMc's trial and global expansion". BBC News. December 7, 2023. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  6. ↑ "New McDonald's concept coming to Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook". CBS Chicago. November 30, 2023. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "McDonald's unveils US CosMc's trial and global expansion". British Broadcasting Company . December 7, 2023. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  8. ↑ Kammerlohr, Emily (August 25, 2017). "McDonald's Characters: Who Are Grimace, CosMc, & More?". The Daily Meal. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 Lucas, Amelia (July 27, 2023). "McDonald's is creating a spinoff restaurant brand called CosMc's". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  10. ↑ Wiener-Bronner, Danielle (December 6, 2023). "McDonald's unveils CosMc's, its answer to Starbucks". CNN Business. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  11. 1 2 "Customers line up for hours at drive-thru for new CosMc's". CBS Chicago. December 7, 2023. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  12. ↑ Bhatnagar, Parija (January 24, 2024). "CosMc's first location had twice as much traffic last month than a typical McDonald's | CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  13. 1 2 Maze, Jonathan (December 6, 2023). "Check out McDonald's new concept, CosMc's". Restaurant Business. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  14. ↑ Bhatnagar, Parija (January 24, 2024). "CosMc's first location had twice as much traffic last month than a typical McDonald's | CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  15. ↑ Walrath-Holdridge, Mary. "McDonald's spinoff CosMc's launches app with rewards club, mobile ordering as locations expand". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
  16. ↑ Lucas, Amelia (January 10, 2025). "McDonald's to close three CosMc's locations — and open two more". CNBC. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
  17. ↑ "CosMc's: McDonald's finally reveals menu, details about spinoff restaurant". TODAY.com. December 6, 2023. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  18. 1 2 "McDonald's spinoff CosMc pops up in Midwest". FOXBusiness. December 5, 2023. Archived from the original on December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
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