Tokyo has Shibuya and New York has Times Square. As for Kuala Lumpur, we have Bukit Bintang. The Malaysian capital’s beloved retail and tourism heart is also special to McDonald’s: exactly 40 years ago, we launched our first-ever store right at the centre of Bukit Bintang’s bustling intersection.

But the pandemic hit Bukit Bintang hard. Retailers saw a 90% drop in sales, with deserted streets and shuttered stores even as lockdown measures eased, as Malaysians grew used to shopping and living online. The tough climate has also raised nationalistic sentiments, with increasing calls to boycott big foreign brands like ours for stealing large pieces of an already shrinking pie from small local businesses.

To show that we’re a friend, not a foe, to local businesses, we needed to give Malaysians a reason to enjoy this special place offline: retailers on Bukit Bintang, and our store, depended on it.

Social-media-savvy Malaysians often seek Instagrammable offline experiences that’ll boost their online persona, leading them to prioritise IG-worthiness over great product or service when choosing where to eat or shop. As a brand that’s known for bringing feel-good fun with our iconic, playful identity wherever we go, we saw an opportunity to turn the once-bustling, now-deserted Bukit Bintang intersection into our powerful medium.

Working with Kuala Lumpur City Hall, we gave Bukit Bintang’s crosswalk a delicious makeover featuring our World Famous Fries. Malaysians couldn’t help but to interact and “steal” shots for social media with iconic elements on the crossing like the red fries box and ketchup-dipped fries, encouraging their friends to head down too.

In just a few days, the crossing became the city’s newest IG-worthy spot: one that’ll encourage Malaysians to come for the ‘Gram, but stay for the (McDonald’s) food and Bukit Bintang merchandise.

With COVID-19 lockdowns accelerating digital adoption, 9 out of 10 Malaysians prefer to shop online even post-pandemic, making Malaysia the e-commerce kings of Southeast Asia (Facebook and Bain & Company, 2021). Consumers had little reason to head to Bukit Bintang to shop at local retailers’ stores or dine-in at McDonald’s when they could order online, impacting their businesses and ours.

We wanted key stakeholders (e.g., public, government, press) to see us as a friend, not foe, to local business. A McDonald’s promo or billboard wasn’t enough: we needed an experience that’ll serve the important-yet-struggling Bukit Bintang local retailer community as well.

Inspired by how Malaysians increasingly seek physical experiences that also enhance their digital profiles, we sought to use our brand’s feel-good identity to turn Bukit Bintang into the latest IG-worthy spot. All to attract much-needed traffic back into Bukit Bintang’s stores, while enhancing our reputation amongst stakeholders.

Inspired by Mcdonald’s feel-good visual identity, we painted our famous red fry box on Bukit Bintang crosswalk’s main walkway that faced McDonald’s first-ever outlet, while the rest of the crosswalk was dotted with the ketchup-dipped fry graphics. Special care was taken with the city council to select red and yellow paints that not only matched our iconic brand colours, but that were also traffic-safe and element-proof.

The result is an 8,300-square-foot zone of fun that became the city’s latest Instagrammable attraction. Malaysians had a blast striking a pose and “stealing” our fries for their social media. This largest branded crosswalk ever created in Malaysia also serves as a permanent reminder to the pedestrians that feel-good moments are just across the street at Malaysia’s first-ever McDonald’s.

In just two weeks, McDonald’s Fries Crosswalk became the city’s hottest new IG-worthy spot, leading to over 268K social engagements with an encouraging 82% positive sentiment.

This 8,300 square feet of fun also became the talk of the town, receiving overwhelmingly positive coverage by all major mainstream Malaysian press, and even regional and global publications, leading to over RM2.55 million in earned media impressions.

The crossing also became the talk of key stakeholders, including the government, with Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim lauding the initiative for “turning Bukit Bintang’s crosswalk into an iconic symbol of the city.”

More importantly, by driving people from online to offline, we helped bring life back to Bukit Bintang, with a 21.5% increase in footfall to McDonald’s Bukit Bintang at a time when people preferred to order online, as well as increase in foot traffic to Bukit Bintang’s local retailers.