Canon vs McDonald's: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: Canon and McDonald's side by side

1. 1933Canon

   Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory opens

   Goro Yoshida, Saburo Uchida and Takeo Maeda open a camera laboratory in a Roppongi apartment in Tokyo to build a Japanese 35mm camera that could rival the Leica.

2. 1934Canon

   Kwanon prototype

   Yoshida builds the Kwanon, Japan's first 35mm focal-plane-shutter camera prototype, named after the Buddhist goddess of mercy. It never goes on sale.

3. 1936Canon

   Hansa Canon goes on sale

   The lab's first commercial camera, the Hansa Canon, uses a Nikkor lens and rangefinder supplied by Nippon Kogaku, the predecessor of Nikon. The 'Canon' trademark had been filed in 1935.

4. 1937Canon

   Precision Optical Industry incorporated

   The business is incorporated on August 10, 1937 as Precision Optical Industry, Co., Ltd. Takeshi Mitarai becomes president in 1942.

5. 1940McDonald's

   First McDonald's Opens in San Bernardino

   Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the first McDonald's restaurant on May 15, 1940 in San Bernardino, California. The original drive-in gave the brothers a live operating laboratory before they stripped the model down to a faster, lower-cost menu.

6. 1948McDonald's

   Speedee Service System Introduced

   The brothers simplified operations in 1948 around 15-cent hamburgers, shakes, and fries.

7. 1949Canon

   Tokyo Stock Exchange listing

   Canon Camera Co. (renamed in 1947) lists on the Tokyo Stock Exchange when postwar trading resumes, and opens a New York branch in 1955.

8. 1955McDonald's

   Ray Kroc Opens Des Plaines Restaurant

   Ray Kroc opened his first McDonald's in Des Plaines, Illinois on April 15, 1955 after becoming the brothers' franchise agent. That restaurant became the base for converting a California operating idea into a national franchise system.

9. 1961McDonald's

   Hamburger University Opens

   Hamburger University opened in the basement of an Elk Grove Village, Illinois restaurant in 1961. The training program mattered because it formalized the standards and operating routines that franchisees needed to deliver a consistent experience.

10. 1961McDonald's

    Kroc Buys the Brothers' Company

    McDonald's says it acquired the rights to the brothers' company in 1961 for $2.7 million. The deal gave Kroc control of the name and system, setting up the real estate-backed franchise model that later defined parent-company economics.

11. 1964Canon

    Canola 130 calculator

    Canon moves beyond cameras with the Canola 130 desktop electronic calculator, followed in 1970 by Japan's first plain-paper copier, the NP-1100, and its first semiconductor lithography tool, the PPC-1.

12. 1968McDonald's

    Big Mac Added to National Menu

    The Big Mac, developed by owner-operator Jim Delligatti of Pittsburgh, was added to the national menu in 1968. It became a durable core product and a recognizable signal of the company's ability to turn franchisee ideas into systemwide menu platforms.

13. 1969Canon

    Renamed Canon Inc.

    Canon Camera Co. changes its name to Canon Inc. to reflect a product range that now spans business machines as well as cameras.

14. 1975McDonald's

    Egg McMuffin Builds Breakfast

    The Egg McMuffin, created by owner-operator Herb Peterson of Santa Barbara, California, was added to the national menu in 1975. It helped turn breakfast into a major daypart rather than leaving the restaurants dependent on lunch and dinner traffic.

15. 1987Canon

    EOS system launches

    Canon launches the EOS 650 and the all-electronic EF lens mount, the base of its autofocus SLR and later digital SLR lines.

16. 1995Canon

    Fujio Mitarai becomes president

    Fujio Mitarai takes over as president, exits personal computers and other loss-making lines, and in 1996 starts the Excellent Global Corporation Plan.

17. 2003Canon

    Start of No. 1 camera share run

    Canon takes the No. 1 share of the global interchangeable-lens digital camera market, a position it has held every year through 2025.

18. 2003McDonald's

    I'm Lovin' It Campaign Launches

    McDonald's launched its global "I'm lovin' it" marketing campaign in 2003, its first worldwide brand campaign.

19. 2016Canon

    Toshiba Medical acquisition

    Canon completes the ¥665.5 billion (about $5.9 billion) purchase of Toshiba Medical Systems in December 2016, later renamed Canon Medical Systems.

20. 2017McDonald's

    Global McDelivery Day with UberEATS

    McDonald's marked Global McDelivery Day in 2017 to support the broader launch of McDelivery with UberEATS. Delivery expanded restaurant reach beyond the counter and drive-thru, while also adding packaging, marketplace-fee, and kitchen-throughput challenges.

21. 2018Canon

    EOS R mirrorless system

    Canon launches the full-frame EOS R mirrorless system and RF lens mount.

22. 2019McDonald's

    Dynamic Yield Acquisition

    McDonald's agreed to acquire Dynamic Yield in 2019 to personalize drive-thru menu boards, kiosks, and app experiences using signals such as time of day, weather, restaurant traffic, and trending items.

23. 2023Canon

    Nanoimprint lithography launch

    Canon releases the FPA-1200NZ2C nanoimprint lithography system in October 2023, able to pattern 14 nm lines, and delists its ADRs from the New York Stock Exchange in March.

24. 2024Canon

    First NIL shipment and medical impairment

    Canon ships its first nanoimprint system to the Texas Institute for Electronics on September 26, 2024, and books a ~$1.11 billion (¥165.1 billion) goodwill impairment on its medical business for the year.

25. 2024McDonald's

    Quarter Pounder E. Coli Outbreak

    U.S. Public health agencies linked a 2024 E. Coli outbreak to slivered onions served on McDonald's Quarter Pounders in affected states.

26. 2025Canon

    Record net sales of ~$31 billion (¥4,624.7 billion)

    Canon reports record 2025 net sales of ~$31 billion (¥4,624.7 billion) and net income attributable to Canon Inc. of ~$2.23 billion (¥332.1 billion).

27. 2025McDonald's

    $26.9B FY2025 Revenue

    McDonald's reported $26.885 billion in FY2025 revenue and $8.563 billion in net income.

28. 2026Canon

    Phase VII plan and new president

    Canon unveils its 2026-2030 Phase VII plan, merges Canon Medical's operations into Canon Inc. on April 1, and appoints Kazuto Ogawa President and COO on March 27 while Fujio Mitarai stays Chairman and CEO.

Acquisitions

Questions about Canon vs McDonald's