Yang Haoyu, senior manager of the Zhejiang branch of McDonald's [Photo/Qianjiang Evening News]

It has been 28 years since McDonald's opened its first restaurant in China and with so many years of development, China has grown into the third largest market for the world's fast food giant.

By July 2018, there were over 2,800 McDonald's restaurants in Chinese mainland offering jobs to more than 150,000 Chinese people. It plans to open another 2,000 over the next five years with the main focus on innovative technology.

Yang Haoyu, senior manager of the Zhejiang branch of McDonald's, recalled the moment when the first restaurant started operation in Shenzhen, Guangdong province in 1990, "Shenzhen is at the forefront of China's reform and opening-up. The number of consumers during the first weekend broke the company's global record.”

McDonald's has always payed attention to the Chinese market and has innovated its products to appeal to local people's taste, said Yang.

Yang ascribed the success in China to the company's efforts and the favorable business environment for foreign-funded enterprises.

"The environment today is much better than 28 years ago. Government departments are more willing to listen to the suggestions and advice of foreign companies and have done a lot to streamline administrative procedures for them," said Yang.

The manager revealed that McDonald's will change its focus to "future restaurants" in the years to come which will provide consumers with a new dining by applying digital hardware and software, and offering customized products and services.

"It is estimated that by 2022, 90 percent of our restaurants will be upgraded," Yang remarked.

Being optimistic about the development prospects in China, McDonald's has constantly increased its investment in the Asian country. Moreover, over the past 28 years, the company has attracted over 100 its suppliers to invest 20 billion yuan ($2.89 billion) in China, bringing in the world's most advanced food standards.

McDonald's attaches great importance to the layout of restaurants in Zhejiang, also one of China's most prosperous provinces. Since the first Zhejiang restaurant was launched in 1997, nearly 160 restaurants have sprung up in the province, employing more than 7,000 staff members.

A view of upgraded restaurant of McDonald's [Photo/Qianjiang Evening News]