In McDonald's branding history, what was the name of the 1955 company that Ray Kroc established to operate the chain?

Ray Kroc established McDonald's System, Inc. in 1955 to operate and expand the McDonald's chain.

Kroc opened the first restaurant under the McDonald's franchise system in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1955. The company name reflected the operating and franchising structure he was building around the McDonald brothers' restaurant concept. Standardized procedures, menus, equipment, and visual identity allowed the business to reproduce a consistent customer experience.

The company is often confused with McDonald's Corporation, the later corporate name. McDonald's System, Inc. was renamed McDonald's Corporation in 1960, after the company had expanded and Kroc had acquired the rights to the McDonald's name from the brothers.

This naming history matters to branding because the company was not merely selling one restaurant's food. It was creating a repeatable system whose name, arches, uniforms, packaging, and service standards could travel across markets while maintaining a common identity.