Kroc's Life-Changing Visit To A Small California Restaurant

Ray Kroc's life took a dramatic turn in 1954 when he visited a McDonald's restaurant in San Bernardino, California. At the time, he was a traveling salesman who had made his living selling Multi-Mixer milkshake machines to restaurants.

The reason for the visit was straightforward: the restaurant had ordered an unusual number of his machines. Kroc went to see the operation for himself.

Little did he know that this visit would eventually lead him to become a key player in one of the largest fast-food chains in the world.

In 1955, just a year after his initial visit, Kroc opened the first McDonald's under his own management in Des Plaines, Illinois. This marked an important milestone on the path that would take Kroc from a salesman to a business magnate.