来源：沪江商务英语（HJ_BizEnglish）
如果问你“麦当劳是一家什么公司”，你会怎么回答？
食品公司？(food company)
连锁餐厅？(chain restaurant)
嗯，看起来麦当劳主要干的就是这个事，不过，这其实都是表象。
如果你问一个熟悉麦当劳的商业分析员，他会告诉你麦当劳其实是一家房地产公司(real estate company)
在说“为什么”之前我们先来讲讲麦当劳的营收构成。
麦当劳的店铺分为两种：一种是直营店，也就是麦当劳自营店，相当于京东上面的自营商品。
第二种就是所谓的加盟店，而且其实我们看到的85%的麦当劳店面都是这种形式。
About 85% of the company in 2016 was represented by franchisee-run locations—people who agree to operate individual McDonald’s restaurants with a licensed privilege to the branding.
2016年，麦当劳加盟店的数量占到了85%，即通过获得特许经营权的方式运营麦当劳餐厅。
而且，其实，麦当劳最有价值的部分正是那些加盟店，它们是最大头的利润来源。
The company keeps about 82% of the revenue generated by franchisees, compared with only about 16% of the revenue from its company-operated locations, which is reduced by the expenses of running those operations, according to the investment blog Wall Street Survivor.
根据Wall Street Survivor投资博客的说法：麦当劳82%的利润都来自加盟店，只有16%的利润来自自营店（这主要是因为自营店运营成本较高）。
那么，为什么加盟店能成为麦当劳的“摇钱树”呢？今天，我们来讲讲其中的门道。
加盟店赚的则是另外四种钱：
首先，只要加盟就得先交给麦当劳一笔保证金，这是一笔固定的钱；
第二，加盟者还要向麦当劳缴纳授权费(royalties)，这笔钱就不是固定的了，而是全年销售额的4.5%左右；
第三部分是加盟者向麦当劳购买食物加工器具、仪器的钱；
而第四部分则是最有意思的部分，加盟店要向麦当劳贡献租金(rent)。
McDonald’s makes much of its revenue by buying the physical properties and then leasing them to franchisees, often at large mark-ups.
麦当劳收入来源的最大头就在于收租金。通常麦当劳买下地产，然后再二度租给加盟商的。
而且，根据外媒Businessweek的报道，加盟店向麦当劳缴纳的房租费用相当高，大约占到毛利润的22%.
The total sales for an average location clocked in at $2.7 million per store each year, with $1.7 million in gross profits after accounting for food and paper costs. But then there are also other expenses: rent, payroll, advertising, promotions, operating supplies, insurance, and more. Average operating income after accounting for all those expenses rounded out to a take-home of just $154,000 per year for a single franchisee.
通常来说，每家加盟店每年流水大概有270万美元，但扣除食物、纸张成本后，大概有170万美元毛利润。如果再扣除其他诸如房租、员工工资、广告、营销、运营供应、保险等成本，每家加盟店店主实际到手的钱只有15.4万美元。
The average rent per store amounts to about 22% of average gross profits each year for franchisees. The company has more than 36,000 locations across more than 100 countries, so that adds up quickly. Better put, McDonald’s has more than $30 billion in real estate assets, and annual profits that float around $4.5 billion.
差不多，每家加盟店要向麦当劳缴纳的房租占到总毛利润的22%。而麦当劳在全球100多个国家，共有36000多家店，靠收租就能进账300亿美元，而房租每年能带来45亿美元的收益。
而且，根据美国的纳税法的政策规定，麦当劳还能靠着房租再稳稳大赚一笔。具体原因是这样的：
Some types of property—such as cars—lose value over time, so it makes sense to offer tax breaks for their lost value. Real estate, on the other hand, often increases in value over time, and yet the IRS allows owners to deduct depreciation from taxable rent. This is something that McDonald’s can very easily take advantage of.
一些其他个人财产，比如汽车，它的价值是随着时间逐渐贬值的，所以对于这种损失价值，减免汽车税是合理的。另一方面，房产却是随着时间增值的，但美国国税局却允许房主对应税房租也可以折旧减税。这样一来，麦当劳就能靠着这个政策，再大赚一笔钱。
大家应该都看出来的，麦当劳在这个过程中赚得钱，并不是做汉堡也不是卖汉堡，而是收租，是个十足的包租婆，所以说它是地产公司一点都不为过。
Most people don't realize it, but McDonald's is not a burger-flipping restaurant chain; it is one of the world's best real estate portfolios. Franchisees flip the burgers. McDonald's simply owns the best commercial property all over the world.
大部分人都没有意识到：麦当劳并不是一个单纯做汉堡的连锁餐厅，它是全世界最厉害的房地产集团之一。他们让加盟店来负责做汉堡，而麦当劳自己则拥有着全世界最有价值的商业地产。
不过嘛，它能这样靠收租过活，毕竟还是因为它本身的食物有市场，所以从这个角度讲麦当劳还是一家正经的食品公司。
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