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The first McDonald's restaurant on Mars
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The McDonald's fast food company is the world's largest restaurant chain which prides itself with offering (almost) the same standardized menu all around the globe...
...this globe.
When humanity colonizes Mars, how large would the population of the colony need to be in order to provide all the infrastructure and industry required to allow McDonald's to open an economically viable restaurant which offers the complete menu without having to rely on off-world exports?
economy food mars infrastructure
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
The McDonald's fast food company is the world's largest restaurant chain which prides itself with offering (almost) the same standardized menu all around the globe...
...this globe.
When humanity colonizes Mars, how large would the population of the colony need to be in order to provide all the infrastructure and industry required to allow McDonald's to open an economically viable restaurant which offers the complete menu without having to rely on off-world exports?
economy food mars infrastructure
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
1
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
The McDonald's fast food company is the world's largest restaurant chain which prides itself with offering (almost) the same standardized menu all around the globe...
...this globe.
When humanity colonizes Mars, how large would the population of the colony need to be in order to provide all the infrastructure and industry required to allow McDonald's to open an economically viable restaurant which offers the complete menu without having to rely on off-world exports?
economy food mars infrastructure
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
The McDonald's fast food company is the world's largest restaurant chain which prides itself with offering (almost) the same standardized menu all around the globe...
...this globe.
When humanity colonizes Mars, how large would the population of the colony need to be in order to provide all the infrastructure and industry required to allow McDonald's to open an economically viable restaurant which offers the complete menu without having to rely on off-world exports?
economy food mars infrastructure
economy food mars infrastructure
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
edited 2 hours ago
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
asked 2 hours ago
Philipp
29.3k1160111
29.3k1160111
I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
1
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
1
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago
I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
1
1
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
up vote
2
down vote
A (local) population of about ten thousand people should be enough. In my opinion there are three factors here.
Is there enough need for a restaurant? There seem to be around 14.000 McDonalds restaurants in the US, which is roughly one per 23.000 inhabitants. Assuming that the first one on Mars will be on the smaller size and have less competition, 10.000 potential customers should be fine.
Can you produce the menu items? I think this is the easiest point. Most of the ingredients derived from plants will be fine, something like lettuce, grains and tomatoes will be among the first things grown on Mars anyway. Meat will be harder, but lab-grown meat is definitely no further in the future than large self-sufficient martian colonies. And since the colony needs to eat, the food will have to be there anyway. Interestingly, the only problem I see is the packaging. Large amounts of trash are most likely a no-go on a small colony and neither the wood for paper nor the oil for most common plastics will be easily accessible on Mars.
Are you allowed to do this? Actually I think this is the critical point. Depending on your vision of the future, martian colonies will either be state funded military/science/vanity missions, or research/mining/vanity operations bankrolled by large companies and conglomerates. This means that initially all colonists in a location will be permanently bound to an employer and critical resources like food, water and energy will be centrally controlled. You'll have to wait quite a while and most likely a few generations for "free martian citizens" and an internal free market to develop. The more likely option is outside involvement. Just think of the publicity of being the first interplanetary fast-food chain. So the most likely thing is that some company executives on earth will just cut a deal and some company/state-run cafeteria on Mars will be rebranded into the first McDonalds in space.
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
1500
That's just an arbitrary number isn't it?
Not entirely, it seems that someone on Quora asked "How many customers are there per McDonalds store", to which the lowest value was:
At my current store we may serve 500 (max)people each day but most of that is during the breakfast and lunch hours.
(responses mostly from McDonalds staff) and McDonalds own 2009 report (PDF) said:
Last year, 1 in 8 meals were eaten out of the home.This year, it will be 1 in 9
So assuming everyone eats out one meal every three days and McDonalds is the only show in town, you need 1500 people to support a McDonalds.
The chances are McDonalds or KFC are highly likely to be the first branded fast food joint in town, but not likely to be the first place to eat. You'll also need a significant population of the type who would eat at a McDonalds, along with a self sustaining independent colony.
So probably around 10-15,000
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
You would need a completely terraformed Mars, to be able to have livestock and feed them with food grown on the planet.
You would then need something similar to the society of the '60s, to be able to replicate the same scale economies, logistics and technology.
I assume that, in order to have such an advanced level, you would need to have at least a couple billion people living on Mars (in 1960 there were about 3 billion people on Earth).
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 3 more comments
up vote
0
down vote
At least one million
Source(s): Just trust me on this.
Now for reality. The real number is hard to guess, because:
- For story purposes, the first ever McDonalds may be offering localized menu. But lets assume we want to deliver the iconic Big Mac on Mars
- It is also worth noting, that the Big Mac might be made from completely different items, because cows cause global warming (Skeptics confirmed). But lets assume that one of reasons to leave Earth is global ban on beef meat and also that greenhouse gasses are needed for Mars terraformation.
In my opinion, if Mars has around million people of population, it may be economically profitable to open a venue there.
Enjoy your food!
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
add a comment |Â
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
2
down vote
A (local) population of about ten thousand people should be enough. In my opinion there are three factors here.
Is there enough need for a restaurant? There seem to be around 14.000 McDonalds restaurants in the US, which is roughly one per 23.000 inhabitants. Assuming that the first one on Mars will be on the smaller size and have less competition, 10.000 potential customers should be fine.
Can you produce the menu items? I think this is the easiest point. Most of the ingredients derived from plants will be fine, something like lettuce, grains and tomatoes will be among the first things grown on Mars anyway. Meat will be harder, but lab-grown meat is definitely no further in the future than large self-sufficient martian colonies. And since the colony needs to eat, the food will have to be there anyway. Interestingly, the only problem I see is the packaging. Large amounts of trash are most likely a no-go on a small colony and neither the wood for paper nor the oil for most common plastics will be easily accessible on Mars.
Are you allowed to do this? Actually I think this is the critical point. Depending on your vision of the future, martian colonies will either be state funded military/science/vanity missions, or research/mining/vanity operations bankrolled by large companies and conglomerates. This means that initially all colonists in a location will be permanently bound to an employer and critical resources like food, water and energy will be centrally controlled. You'll have to wait quite a while and most likely a few generations for "free martian citizens" and an internal free market to develop. The more likely option is outside involvement. Just think of the publicity of being the first interplanetary fast-food chain. So the most likely thing is that some company executives on earth will just cut a deal and some company/state-run cafeteria on Mars will be rebranded into the first McDonalds in space.
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
A (local) population of about ten thousand people should be enough. In my opinion there are three factors here.
Is there enough need for a restaurant? There seem to be around 14.000 McDonalds restaurants in the US, which is roughly one per 23.000 inhabitants. Assuming that the first one on Mars will be on the smaller size and have less competition, 10.000 potential customers should be fine.
Can you produce the menu items? I think this is the easiest point. Most of the ingredients derived from plants will be fine, something like lettuce, grains and tomatoes will be among the first things grown on Mars anyway. Meat will be harder, but lab-grown meat is definitely no further in the future than large self-sufficient martian colonies. And since the colony needs to eat, the food will have to be there anyway. Interestingly, the only problem I see is the packaging. Large amounts of trash are most likely a no-go on a small colony and neither the wood for paper nor the oil for most common plastics will be easily accessible on Mars.
Are you allowed to do this? Actually I think this is the critical point. Depending on your vision of the future, martian colonies will either be state funded military/science/vanity missions, or research/mining/vanity operations bankrolled by large companies and conglomerates. This means that initially all colonists in a location will be permanently bound to an employer and critical resources like food, water and energy will be centrally controlled. You'll have to wait quite a while and most likely a few generations for "free martian citizens" and an internal free market to develop. The more likely option is outside involvement. Just think of the publicity of being the first interplanetary fast-food chain. So the most likely thing is that some company executives on earth will just cut a deal and some company/state-run cafeteria on Mars will be rebranded into the first McDonalds in space.
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
up vote
2
down vote
A (local) population of about ten thousand people should be enough. In my opinion there are three factors here.
Is there enough need for a restaurant? There seem to be around 14.000 McDonalds restaurants in the US, which is roughly one per 23.000 inhabitants. Assuming that the first one on Mars will be on the smaller size and have less competition, 10.000 potential customers should be fine.
Can you produce the menu items? I think this is the easiest point. Most of the ingredients derived from plants will be fine, something like lettuce, grains and tomatoes will be among the first things grown on Mars anyway. Meat will be harder, but lab-grown meat is definitely no further in the future than large self-sufficient martian colonies. And since the colony needs to eat, the food will have to be there anyway. Interestingly, the only problem I see is the packaging. Large amounts of trash are most likely a no-go on a small colony and neither the wood for paper nor the oil for most common plastics will be easily accessible on Mars.
Are you allowed to do this? Actually I think this is the critical point. Depending on your vision of the future, martian colonies will either be state funded military/science/vanity missions, or research/mining/vanity operations bankrolled by large companies and conglomerates. This means that initially all colonists in a location will be permanently bound to an employer and critical resources like food, water and energy will be centrally controlled. You'll have to wait quite a while and most likely a few generations for "free martian citizens" and an internal free market to develop. The more likely option is outside involvement. Just think of the publicity of being the first interplanetary fast-food chain. So the most likely thing is that some company executives on earth will just cut a deal and some company/state-run cafeteria on Mars will be rebranded into the first McDonalds in space.
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
A (local) population of about ten thousand people should be enough. In my opinion there are three factors here.
Is there enough need for a restaurant? There seem to be around 14.000 McDonalds restaurants in the US, which is roughly one per 23.000 inhabitants. Assuming that the first one on Mars will be on the smaller size and have less competition, 10.000 potential customers should be fine.
Can you produce the menu items? I think this is the easiest point. Most of the ingredients derived from plants will be fine, something like lettuce, grains and tomatoes will be among the first things grown on Mars anyway. Meat will be harder, but lab-grown meat is definitely no further in the future than large self-sufficient martian colonies. And since the colony needs to eat, the food will have to be there anyway. Interestingly, the only problem I see is the packaging. Large amounts of trash are most likely a no-go on a small colony and neither the wood for paper nor the oil for most common plastics will be easily accessible on Mars.
Are you allowed to do this? Actually I think this is the critical point. Depending on your vision of the future, martian colonies will either be state funded military/science/vanity missions, or research/mining/vanity operations bankrolled by large companies and conglomerates. This means that initially all colonists in a location will be permanently bound to an employer and critical resources like food, water and energy will be centrally controlled. You'll have to wait quite a while and most likely a few generations for "free martian citizens" and an internal free market to develop. The more likely option is outside involvement. Just think of the publicity of being the first interplanetary fast-food chain. So the most likely thing is that some company executives on earth will just cut a deal and some company/state-run cafeteria on Mars will be rebranded into the first McDonalds in space.
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
answered 1 hour ago
mlk
41914
41914
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
1500
That's just an arbitrary number isn't it?
Not entirely, it seems that someone on Quora asked "How many customers are there per McDonalds store", to which the lowest value was:
At my current store we may serve 500 (max)people each day but most of that is during the breakfast and lunch hours.
(responses mostly from McDonalds staff) and McDonalds own 2009 report (PDF) said:
Last year, 1 in 8 meals were eaten out of the home.This year, it will be 1 in 9
So assuming everyone eats out one meal every three days and McDonalds is the only show in town, you need 1500 people to support a McDonalds.
The chances are McDonalds or KFC are highly likely to be the first branded fast food joint in town, but not likely to be the first place to eat. You'll also need a significant population of the type who would eat at a McDonalds, along with a self sustaining independent colony.
So probably around 10-15,000
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
1500
That's just an arbitrary number isn't it?
Not entirely, it seems that someone on Quora asked "How many customers are there per McDonalds store", to which the lowest value was:
At my current store we may serve 500 (max)people each day but most of that is during the breakfast and lunch hours.
(responses mostly from McDonalds staff) and McDonalds own 2009 report (PDF) said:
Last year, 1 in 8 meals were eaten out of the home.This year, it will be 1 in 9
So assuming everyone eats out one meal every three days and McDonalds is the only show in town, you need 1500 people to support a McDonalds.
The chances are McDonalds or KFC are highly likely to be the first branded fast food joint in town, but not likely to be the first place to eat. You'll also need a significant population of the type who would eat at a McDonalds, along with a self sustaining independent colony.
So probably around 10-15,000
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
1500
That's just an arbitrary number isn't it?
Not entirely, it seems that someone on Quora asked "How many customers are there per McDonalds store", to which the lowest value was:
At my current store we may serve 500 (max)people each day but most of that is during the breakfast and lunch hours.
(responses mostly from McDonalds staff) and McDonalds own 2009 report (PDF) said:
Last year, 1 in 8 meals were eaten out of the home.This year, it will be 1 in 9
So assuming everyone eats out one meal every three days and McDonalds is the only show in town, you need 1500 people to support a McDonalds.
The chances are McDonalds or KFC are highly likely to be the first branded fast food joint in town, but not likely to be the first place to eat. You'll also need a significant population of the type who would eat at a McDonalds, along with a self sustaining independent colony.
So probably around 10-15,000
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
1500
That's just an arbitrary number isn't it?
Not entirely, it seems that someone on Quora asked "How many customers are there per McDonalds store", to which the lowest value was:
At my current store we may serve 500 (max)people each day but most of that is during the breakfast and lunch hours.
(responses mostly from McDonalds staff) and McDonalds own 2009 report (PDF) said:
Last year, 1 in 8 meals were eaten out of the home.This year, it will be 1 in 9
So assuming everyone eats out one meal every three days and McDonalds is the only show in town, you need 1500 people to support a McDonalds.
The chances are McDonalds or KFC are highly likely to be the first branded fast food joint in town, but not likely to be the first place to eat. You'll also need a significant population of the type who would eat at a McDonalds, along with a self sustaining independent colony.
So probably around 10-15,000
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
edited 24 mins ago
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
answered 58 mins ago
Separatrix
71k30167279
71k30167279
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
You would need a completely terraformed Mars, to be able to have livestock and feed them with food grown on the planet.
You would then need something similar to the society of the '60s, to be able to replicate the same scale economies, logistics and technology.
I assume that, in order to have such an advanced level, you would need to have at least a couple billion people living on Mars (in 1960 there were about 3 billion people on Earth).
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 3 more comments
up vote
0
down vote
You would need a completely terraformed Mars, to be able to have livestock and feed them with food grown on the planet.
You would then need something similar to the society of the '60s, to be able to replicate the same scale economies, logistics and technology.
I assume that, in order to have such an advanced level, you would need to have at least a couple billion people living on Mars (in 1960 there were about 3 billion people on Earth).
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 3 more comments
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
You would need a completely terraformed Mars, to be able to have livestock and feed them with food grown on the planet.
You would then need something similar to the society of the '60s, to be able to replicate the same scale economies, logistics and technology.
I assume that, in order to have such an advanced level, you would need to have at least a couple billion people living on Mars (in 1960 there were about 3 billion people on Earth).
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
You would need a completely terraformed Mars, to be able to have livestock and feed them with food grown on the planet.
You would then need something similar to the society of the '60s, to be able to replicate the same scale economies, logistics and technology.
I assume that, in order to have such an advanced level, you would need to have at least a couple billion people living on Mars (in 1960 there were about 3 billion people on Earth).
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
answered 2 hours ago
L.Dutch♦
66k20159311
66k20159311
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 3 more comments
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
1
1
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
Why do you need terraforming? You can grow food and cattle in indoor grow houses. You need to do that anyway to have a self-sufficient Mars colony. Also, I doubt that your 3 billion figure is realistic. That might be enough to support the whole McDonald's corporation in the size it has on Earth, but we are talking about one restaurant here.
– Philipp
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Regarding "only one restaurant" - In game design I use a model to describe the type of work: Horizontal axis as abstract work and vertical axis as content. Meaning things like damage mechanics, AI, path finding are things which need to be done once and work universally. Concrete is content, like creating maps, dialogues, units - stuff you could do forever. If you want to create the very first complete map in a strategy game, what do you need to have mostly finished? Units, buildings, damage mechanics, path finding, visuals, sound, unit AI, enemy AI, interface, menu, etc.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
@Philipp - Or just think it like this: What would be needed to create a plastic tooth brush? Well, that would include knowledge about hygiene, medicine, bacteria, the industry on a level to create plastic, which in turn requires the scientific method and empiricism, which requires philosophy, which requires a relatively high average IQ in a population, etc. Just to create one plastic tooth brush. So while I am not sure if L.Dutch is correct, I can imagine he very well might be, with demanding massive requirements.
– Battle
1 hour ago
2
2
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
@Philipp, a single restaurant will never be able to sell an hamburger for 1 $. For that you need scale economies. And since you are asking for Mc Donald and not for a generic hamburger shop, I assume you are implying the same or similar scale.
– L.Dutch♦
1 hour ago
1
1
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
I do not believe you need the whole of Mars terraformed to accommodate the function of one McDonald's restaurant. Perhaps it would be better to think of the setting not as on Mars, but "away from the infrastructure of Earth." Consider the same question, but for another body like the dwarf planet Ceres or some remote asteroid colony.
– B.fox
1 hour ago
 |Â
show 3 more comments
up vote
0
down vote
At least one million
Source(s): Just trust me on this.
Now for reality. The real number is hard to guess, because:
- For story purposes, the first ever McDonalds may be offering localized menu. But lets assume we want to deliver the iconic Big Mac on Mars
- It is also worth noting, that the Big Mac might be made from completely different items, because cows cause global warming (Skeptics confirmed). But lets assume that one of reasons to leave Earth is global ban on beef meat and also that greenhouse gasses are needed for Mars terraformation.
In my opinion, if Mars has around million people of population, it may be economically profitable to open a venue there.
Enjoy your food!
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
At least one million
Source(s): Just trust me on this.
Now for reality. The real number is hard to guess, because:
- For story purposes, the first ever McDonalds may be offering localized menu. But lets assume we want to deliver the iconic Big Mac on Mars
- It is also worth noting, that the Big Mac might be made from completely different items, because cows cause global warming (Skeptics confirmed). But lets assume that one of reasons to leave Earth is global ban on beef meat and also that greenhouse gasses are needed for Mars terraformation.
In my opinion, if Mars has around million people of population, it may be economically profitable to open a venue there.
Enjoy your food!
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
At least one million
Source(s): Just trust me on this.
Now for reality. The real number is hard to guess, because:
- For story purposes, the first ever McDonalds may be offering localized menu. But lets assume we want to deliver the iconic Big Mac on Mars
- It is also worth noting, that the Big Mac might be made from completely different items, because cows cause global warming (Skeptics confirmed). But lets assume that one of reasons to leave Earth is global ban on beef meat and also that greenhouse gasses are needed for Mars terraformation.
In my opinion, if Mars has around million people of population, it may be economically profitable to open a venue there.
Enjoy your food!
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
At least one million
Source(s): Just trust me on this.
Now for reality. The real number is hard to guess, because:
- For story purposes, the first ever McDonalds may be offering localized menu. But lets assume we want to deliver the iconic Big Mac on Mars
- It is also worth noting, that the Big Mac might be made from completely different items, because cows cause global warming (Skeptics confirmed). But lets assume that one of reasons to leave Earth is global ban on beef meat and also that greenhouse gasses are needed for Mars terraformation.
In my opinion, if Mars has around million people of population, it may be economically profitable to open a venue there.
Enjoy your food!
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
answered 6 mins ago
Pavel Janicek
28.6k21125202
28.6k21125202
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
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I posted this question because I believe that McDonald's might be a good proxy for how far a Mars colony would need to develop in order to apply standard consumer business models to the Martian population.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
By large are you referring to population count? That metric also doesn't necessarily capture the level of technology available, which can make or break a Martian McDonald's venture
– nullpointer
2 hours ago
@nullpointer Yes, I mean population count. Question edited.
– Philipp
2 hours ago
How do you define economically viable in this context? I'm pretty sure that the first restaurant on its own will be operating at a big loss, but the company as a whole might gain more than enough profit on earth from the publicity.
– mlk
1 hour ago
1
I'm willing to bet that at least one fast food chain has already done this analysis and has a business plan lined up.
– Separatrix
1 hour ago