McDonald's Asks Franchises to Be Open Christmas Day

Those that are open actually do make money

A Big Mac probably isn't your idea of Christmas dinner, but McDonald's is asking its franchisees to stay open on Christmas Day — a day when even Wal-Mart, which caught flack for opening on Thanksgiving evening this year, closes its doors. 

"Our largest holiday opportunity as a system is Christmas Day," McDonald's COO Jim Johannesen wrote in one of two memos that was sent to franchisees and obtained by Advertising Age magazine. "Last year, [company-operated] restaurants that opened on Christmas averaged $5,500 in sales," he wrote.