This Man Owns Over 40 McDonald’s in One Country
McDonald’s does not hand over the keys easily. Becoming an owner-operator means years of interviews, financial vetting, and hands-on training designed to filter out anyone seeking a quick win. The process alone can stretch close to two years, and most applicants never make it through. Even fewer ever scale beyond a few locations.
That is what makes this case unusual. Over more than two decades, one operator in a single country built control of more than 40 McDonald’s restaurants by stepping into struggling locations, fixing day-to-day operations, and earning repeat approval to grow. It was not a sudden expansion or a lucky break. It was a long record of performance that the company kept rewarding with more trust and more stores.
A Defining Childhood
Carlos Mateos Sr. arrived in the United States as a child after leaving Cuba during the late 1960s. His parents held working-class jobs that demanded long hours and reliability, and that environment shaped expectations early. Effort equaled progress, and results mattered more than titles. Before franchising entered the picture, he built a career in law enforcement, which proved useful inside a franchise system built on checklists and standards.
The initial McDonald’s purchase happened in 1999. The location did not sparkle, equipment failed, sales lagged, and infrastructure needed work across the board. But that store was important because it became a live audition.
Repairs happened fast, staffing stabilized, and service tightened. Sales climbed sharply within months, with reported monthly comparable gains reaching 40 to 50 percent. The turnaround signaled something corporate leadership values deeply: Carlos was an operator who could fix things.
Scaling Through Broken Stores
More opportunities followed, but each expansion shared a pattern. Locations arrived with issues, teams rebuilt operations, and sales recovered. That rhythm turned one store into several. By the early 2020s, Carlos’s portfolio had grown into dozens across the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia region.
Public reporting in 2021 cited more than 40 locations. Brand-owned updates later placed the number closer to 59 by 2025, all operated within the same country. Those numbers did not appear overnight, and each reflected repeated proof that struggling restaurants could run better under new leadership.
A Family Business With Real Roles
Scale introduced complexity, which pushed the family deeper into the operation. Carlos’s son, Carlos Mateos Jr., entered the system at the crew level, worked through training roles, then gained experience inside corporate-owned restaurants. He earned owner-operator approval in 2017.
Corporate assignments removed any safety net tied to family ownership, and performance had to stand on its own. The result became a partnership built on shared standards rather than titles. Large franchise groups often talk about giving back once scale arrives, but this one embedded it earlier.
Support extended to schools, military families, local nonprofits, and first responders across the DMV area. That involvement carried practical benefits too. Strong community relationships improved hiring pipelines, local trust, and brand perception in dense markets packed with competition.
Owning over 40 McDonald’s restaurants in one country signals more than wealth. It shows trust earned repeatedly inside a system that monitors every detail. It also shows patience through rejection, comfort with difficult assets, and daily discipline.