A Cultural Mirror Worth Considering: McAtlas

©iStock/Nikolay Chekalin

Photographer and writer Gary He, visited McDonald's in more than 55 countries.

Gary didn't set out to write a book about McDonald's. And, even now, the James Beard Award-winning photographer still says that "McAtlas" — his book about McDonald's — is not a book about McDonald's.

Rather, it's "a visual social anthropology of the world's largest restaurant chain," says Gary, a native New Yorker who spent years traveling to hundreds of outlets of the world's biggest fast-food chain.

"'McAtlas' is the result of my travels across six continents, 55-plus countries, photographing the menu items, the local restaurants, and just watching how locals use those spaces and what they like to eat in those McDonald's," he says. 

On Gary's website:

Internationally, there’s no restaurant where people are eating more often than McDonald’s. It's not just Big Macs and McNuggets, either: McDonald’s menus around the world have long integrated the flavors and dishes of their home countries. Localized menu items now account for about 30% of McDonald’s systemwide sales, not chump change when that total is north of $120 billion.  If we are what we eat, then McDonald's global menu is a cultural mirror worth serious consideration.

As an amateur photographer myself [Laurel Delaney] and I love anything with a global mindset – this book is right up my alley.

Links to learn more:

• McAtlas website.
• Amazon to purchase the book.

wegginar® with Duct Tape Marketing CEO Sara Nay, 9/3/25

©2025 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

Sara Nay, CEO of Duct Tape Marketing, will be presenting a wegginar® on Wednesday, September 3rd at 11 AM CT / 12 PM ET / 10 AM MDT:  "Take Back Control:  How to Lead Global Marketing in the Age of AI and hosted by Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global® (wegg®).

Earlier this year, Sara presented to both Chicago chapters of the Women Presidents Organization, and she was a huge hit. Several members even went on to hire her to support their marketing strategies and AI implementation.  WPO is a partner to wegg.

But back to this exciting wegginar!  Thanks to wegg's generous sponsors, this session is free and open to all.  Sara will share practical, strategy-first insights designed to help business owners take charge of their marketing in today’s fast-changing landscape.

Sara will cover how to:

•  Lead with strategy, not tools.
•  Use AI to scale faster without losing your voice.
•  Compete globally without a massive team.
•  Automate the busywork, focus on high-value work.
•  Train AI like a team member, not a magic trick.

Looking forward to seeing you there.  Oh, and she has a great new book out, which I [Laurel Delaney] endorsed – buy it before her 9/3 wegginar so you can get a feel for her expertise – Unchained:  Breaking Free From Broken Marketing Models, https://unchainedmodel.com/.  It will certainly up your global game.     

If you’re ready to lead with vision and purpose while mastering strategy – global and AI included – this wegginar is designed for you.  Discover more (Sara's bio) and register now: https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/2025/08/06/take-back-control-how-to-lead-global-marketing-in-the-age-of-ai/.

See you there!

What's Next After Globalization?

©iStock/tadamichi

Is our integrated world of institutions, brands, and trade being replaced by something that is less interconnected?  A new book, The Levelling, argues that we are at the end of the age of globalization.

If [Michael] O'Sullivan [the author of The Levelling] is right, and the reversals of international connectivity are part of a long-term shift as opposed to a short-term blip, then what might be the implications for higher ed?

Find out by reading 'The Levelling', Higher Ed, and the End of Globalization.

Stumped on Export/Import Procedures and Documentation?

©iStock/Wichai Leesawatwong

Whether you receive an international order by phone, in person at a trade show or via email, should you formalize the purchase and sale agreement in a written document?  Are preprinted forms from commercial stationers or available online forms worthwhile on your export/import activities?  Have you examined the contents thoroughly of a product you are about to import?

These and a hundred other items are discussed in the book “Export/Import Procedures and Documentation.”

Learn more here.

Hello Planet Entrepreneur

Photo courtesy:  Wiley

Say hello to a new book, Planet Entrepreneur, written by members of the World Entrepreneurship Forum, the first global think tank fully dedicated to entrepreneurship.  Members who contributed are as follows:   Steven D. Strauss, Tugrul Atamer, Inderjit Singh, Nikhil Agarwal, Colin Jones, Thais Corral, Tony Meloto, Jeannie Javelosa, Jack Sim, David Drake, Baybars Altuntas, Fadi N. Sabbagha, Anna-Lena Johannsen, Nicolas Shea and Laurel Delaney!

For a look at the table of contents, more information on the co-writers of Planet Entrepreneur and an excerpt from the book, visit here.

Each chapter focuses on different aspects of the challenges and opportunities currently being encountered and solved by entrepreneurs worldwide, including:

• Using technology to solve real-world problems
• Empowering women and minority entrepreneurs
• The global rise of the self-employed entrepreneur
• Making the marriage of business and the environment work for all
• Social media as a launching pad for your ideas
• Taking your business global in the digital age (my chapter contribution!)

Planet Entrepreneur explains how the world's best entrepreneurs are making a profit or meeting a pressing social need, and how you can too.

Buy the book now: Planet Entrepreneur

(Full disclosure:  I am a pioneer member of the World Entrepreneurship Forum)

Illuminating Explanations On Why China and India Entrepreneurs Matter

"Billions of Entrepreneurs: How China and India Are Reshaping Their Futures -- and Yours" by Tarun Khanna

Oh, in case you missed this: "China Passes Japan to Become No. 2 Economy"