Oh, that’s actually the cleverest bit, what keeps the whole enterprise running smoothly.

Running a restaurant, even one with the presence of McDonald’s, is just not a particularly great business model. Costs, food labor maintenance ect, are high and profit is on average slim, prone to wild fluctuations. The real money is made in being the source of the costs, providing produce and meat, machinery and rental space. So, for nearly all of the company’s history, McDonald’s Corporation®(MCD) just doesn’t bother with the restaurant end of things. Franchisee is just corporate-speak for bag-holder. In exchange for the profits of doing restaurant, the owner assumes all the actual risk of the enterprise. If it fails, it’s own their head. (MCD) will still be there to rent the building and deliver patties to the next schmuck. If it turns out the location just isn’t feasible? Liquidate it! It’s all loss minimization.