Franchisees explain reasons behind McDonald’s closures in Wichita, Kingman and Anthony
The franchisee of the McDonald’s at 1050 N. Broadway that closed on Tuesday says the decision was made by McDonald’s corporate as part of an occasional “screening” the company does of all of its restaurants.
The same process resulted in the closure of the McDonald’s in Kingman on the same day, he said. And Anthony’s McDonald’s also was scheduled to close on Oct. 31, but a fire earlier this month shut it down early.
Michael Lane, who owns 11 McDonald’s restaurants in the area, said that the company didn’t share with him all the reasoning that led to its decision, but ultimately, he said, it was the company’s choice.
“They make the ultimate decision, but as a franchisee, I have to say I understand,” he said. “There are three locations around that one that really serve 80 to 90 percent of the customers in that area, so it made sense to look at it that way and make that tough decision.”
In addition to the fact that other McDonald’s restaurants are close by, including the one Michael Lane also owns at Broadway and Waterman, the dawn of digital options like ordering via app or for delivery has changed the number of physical restaurants that are needed in one area.
As to whether McDonald’s considered crime in the neighborhood as one reason to close the North Broadway store, Michael Lane said he was unsure. Last year, QuikTrip quietly closed its store a few blocks to the south at 730 N. Broadway, and many speculated that crime was one of the reasons.
“It definitely was a difficult location, but that didn’t necessarily play into it,” Michael Lane said. “I wouldn’t say the one down the street is much different. I don’t know whether that was a big reason or not.”
Small-town closures
The McDonald’s in Anthony, a town of around 2,000 that sits 53 miles to Wichita’s southwest, also was on the list of stores McDonald’s corporate targeted for Oct. 31 closure. No one was hurt in the fire that broke out on Oct. 14, Michael Lane said, and he was able to transfer employees from that McDonald’s to other stores he owns. That restaurant was Anthony’s only McDonald’s.
The Oct. 31 closure of the McDonald’s in Kingman — a town of about 3,200 that sits 45 miles west of Wichita — was the result of the same screening process, said Joe Lane, Michael’s cousin, who owned that restaurant along with 10 others. It was Kingman’s only McDonald’s.
“Restaurants out there are lower volume and kind of rank lower in our overall portfolio, and that’s what led to the decision of moving on from that space,” Joe Lane said. “It’s sad. I’m disheartened about it. We don’t like to leave small communities if we can help it.”
With the closing of the three restaurants, Michael Lane said, Lane Enterprises — a company that his father, Bob, started in 1975 — now has 34 restaurants in Kansas. Lane Enterprises owns the majority of the McDonald’s restaurants, which are split between Bob Lane and his wife, Bob’s son, Michael, and his nephew, Joe.
Michael Lane said that franchisees are tasked with “de-arching” closed McDonald’s stores, meaning they must remove anything that indicates the building was once McDonald’s. After that, McDonald’s corporate decides what happens with the empty buildings, and he said he was unaware of what was next for the building at 1050 N. Broadway.
He was able to offer jobs in his other McDonald’s restaurants to all the employees at the North Broadway location, he said.
The McDonald’s at 1050 N. Broadway originally opened in 1985. Michael Lane bought it as part of a package deal in 2017 when former franchisee Steve and Connie Brend sold seven area restaurants and retired.
This story was originally published November 3, 2023 at 11:58 AM.
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