McDonald's franchisees had doubts ahead of breakfast launch

NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald's has been fighting to win back customers, but its franchisees weren't so sure about the comeback plans ahead of the chain's launch of an all-day breakfast menu back in October.

McDonald's Corp. is working to refresh its image and combat slumping sales, with the chain facing changing eating preferences and intense competition.

CEO Steve Easterbrook, who took over last March, has been trying to engineer a comeback with bigger moves, such as the introduction of an all-day breakfast menu in the U.S. that has generated positive headlines for the chain.

Lisa McComb, a McDonald's representative, said in a statement that the results of the franchisee survey were "hardly surprising" since it was conducted between Sept. 18 and Oct. 4, ahead of the Oct. 6 launch of all-day breakfast and "before McDonald's ended the year with momentum."