McDonald's is turning to protein and beverages as it puts billions toward improving its restaurants

• McDonald's is planning to spend billions to lure customers back.
• The chain's McDonald's Next plan calls for changes from employee training to store tech.
• McDonald's is facing stiff competition from rivals and increasingly value-sensitive customers.

McDonald's is spending big to bring customers back to its restaurants.

The fast-food chain plans to devote $8.5 billion over the next 10 years to improvements in its restaurants through investments and rent relief for franchisees, it said on Wednesday. The plan, called McDonald's Next, includes adding more technology to stores, new training for employees, and increasing the burger chain's market share of chicken menu items and beverages.

The goal is "to be the first choice for more customers, more often - while making our restaurants stronger and easier to run," McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski said.

"We are confident that executing across the key components of NEXT will unlock stronger restaurant economics, generate attractive returns for the Company, our franchisees and shareholders, and increase capacity to keep investing in growth," Kempczinski said.

The plan comes as McDonald's faces challenges both within the company and from rivals.

The burger chain reported slowing comparable sales growth in its most recent quarter, pointing to trouble it faced in rolling out a newvalue menufeaturing items priced at $3 or less.

It's also been trying to win back customers who used to head to the Golden Arches for a cheap, quick meal but who are now going to other restaurants, like Burger King and Chili's.

McDonald's executives described several menu changes, including more McNugget and Quarter Pounder options and higher-quality coffee. The chain also wants to grow sales of beverages, which customers often purchase after lunch and pair with a burger or fries, said Jill McDonald, McDonald's global chief restaurant officer.

The chain is also considering options such as grilled chicken and egg bites to offer diners healthy protein choices.

In the US, McDonald's is still deciding on the best strategy for its value menu pricing, Kempczinski said. "That is really the key to going after that low-income consumer," he said.

McDonald's Next will make restaurants more efficient with AI and other operational improvements, the company said. Those types of changes will improve cash flow per restaurant by about $100,000 annually, it said.

McDonald's plan also includes an effort "to elevate the customer experience through great food and great hospitality," which the company calls Make It Golden.

In addition to maintaining its share of the burger market, the plan also calls for McDonald's to increase its share of the beverage and chicken market by 1.5 percentage points each by 2030.

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