McDonald's Japan chooses new CEO

McDonald's Japan chooses new CEO

More than four decades since McDonald's Japan introduced burgers and fries to consumers raised on fish and rice, the company has appointed its first non-Japanese chief executive. Sarah Casanova is to succeed Eiko Harada, who will continue to oversee the operation's holding company, McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan) Ltd, as a chairman.

Operating 3,280 outlets, McDonald's Japan is the core unit of the holding company, 50% of which is owned by McDonald's Corp.

The appointment of Ms. Casanova, a rare female executive in Japan's corporate world, comes as the fast-food company's business in Japan is slumping. It is being pressured by rivals offering inexpensive alternatives to McDonald's meals, while a weakening yen and higher commodity prices are squeezing its profit margins.

The choice of Ms. Casanova, a native of Canada and a 22-year veteran of McDonald's, marks the growing influence of the U.S. parent company in the Japanese arm. That represents a shift for the historically independent-minded Japanese company, the only publicly traded overseas unit of the fast-food company.

From its early days, the Japanese arm often carved a successful path different from its U.S. parent. Mr. Fujita,  the man who brought McDonald's to Japan in 1971, decided to open its first stores in urban, rather than suburban locations, insisting that the Japanese are more influenced by the behavior of people in the cities.

Most recently, Ms. Casanova was McDonald's regional manager in Singapore and Malaysia.