Supermac’s… it’s not McDonald’s

Media Statement

10/2/2015

Managing Director of Supermac’s Pat McDonagh has spoken in response to McDonald’s submitting a 41 page objection to Supermac’s using its own company name in the EU where it has already been operating in the Republic and Northern Ireland for 37 years.

“I am surprised by the points submitted by McDonald’s in objection to our expansion into the EU. The strongest point they make is that there may be confusion between the Supermac’s name and their own name. Supermac’s and McDonald’s have grown and coexisted together within the family restaurant business in Ireland since 1978. As two very distinctive brands with immediately identifiable menus and a clear difference in ingredients and taste there has never been any confusion for our customers.

Our roots in Ireland go as deep as to our name. The Supermac’s name was a most obvious choice for our first restaurant when it was given to me as a nickname during a gaelic football match I played with my secondary school Carmelite College.

Supermac’s has consistently supported business growth in Ireland on every level, most especially that of our local suppliers. We are responding to the large volume of requests we have received since we opened our doors for business in Ballinasloe from customers who emigrated worldwide and wanted to access a real taste of home. These requests have grown greatly over the last seven years with so many Irish people forced to move abroad to make a living. Supermac’s has also been chosen by Fox News as one of the ‘Top Restaurants in the world you should definitely know about’ and by USA Today as one of the ‘Top Foreign Restaurant Chains we want to move to the US’. Expansion of the family restaurant business can only be positive for the sector as a whole.”