Maths expert and mother of two scores high as McDonald’s only female franchisee in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland maths expert Nicola Finlay is not only the new owner of McDonald’s in Dungannon, but currently the restaurant chain’s only female franchisee in Northern Ireland.

Her rise to the top represents something of a departure from tradition, as it will be the first time the Co Antrim woman has ever worked for the company.

Despite that, acceding to the role has seen the former head of Marks and Spencer in Northern Ireland realise a dream she’s held for a very long time.

“I always thought I’d love to own a McDonald’s,” said Nicola. “I knew there was an established process to follow to get a franchise but, after having my little girl, I decided I was going to give it a shot.”

The mother of two – she has a son Anton (six) and daughter Avana (three) – who lives in Ballinderry Upper, near Moira, applied and was successful.

The maths, statistics and computer programming Ulster University graduate initially trained as a statistician before getting a place on a graduate programme with supermarket giant Tesco.

Within a year, she was managing her own Tesco store and then, in 2015, Nicola was Store Manager of the Year across the whole of the supermarket giant’s UK network.

While she enjoyed her time in retail there and subsequently with M&S, where she oversaw more than 20 local stores, Nicola knew she wanted more – and that included a McDonald’s restaurant.

“My ambition is to have many McDonald’s restaurants, not just one,” she said. “I liked the idea of owning my own business but under the world’s number one global company.”

Nicola’s appointment brings to eight the number of McDonald’s franchisees in Northern Ireland. She’s looking forward to making her restaurant, which employs 118 people, an even bigger success. And she’s been learning how the business works from the ground up ahead of officially taking over Dungannon in early December.

“Since March I’ve been on an intense, immersive training programme, which has involved working in other restaurants to gain experience in each and every role involved in the day-to-day running of a restaurant – from crew member right up to shift manager and business manager,” she explained.

“The McDonald’s franchisee training process ensures that I understand the business in its entirety, which is essential for taking it forward.”

Nicola said she was drawn to McDonald’s business model for franchising.

“Its global success is absolutely fantastic; that’s what drew me in,” she continued. “I want great results and to keep growing while doing right by customers.”

Currently there are over 30 McDonald’s restaurants across the region, but there are plans to extend that reach. This is a thrilling prospect for Nicola, but even more so for her son Anton.

“I came home one day after training in my McDonald’s uniform and you would have thought all his Christmases came at once!,” she added.

“Anton was beside himself with joy. He’s so excited.’

When she’s not working, Nicola’s passions include inspiring other women: “I try to share my journey in business and leadership when I can. I like to encourage and inspire young girls to be the best they can. I always say that we can’t choose where we start off in life, but we can always choose where we end up.

“It’s important to have a dream and believe in yourself and you will get there. If I can do it, they can too. My motto is ‘Bite the apple, learn how to chew later’”.