After 16 years of opening his first restaurant in 2003, he employs 3,000 staff who between them serve well over 28 million customers this year. He arrived in Britain as a graduate in the mid-1980s and settled with his wife in west London. He has two grown-up children.
Atul was awarded the OBE for Service to Entrepreneurship in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List of 2015 and among other awards for his achievements received the Leader of the Decade Creating a Better World for All from The Women Economic Forum in 2017.
Emphasizing the Importance of his Employees
Atul places a strong emphasis on each member of staff’s development and training as he believes they are key to the success of the business. As a McDonald’s franchisee, he is committed to recognizing great customer service and loyalty but adds to this by always trying to promote from within the company and to emphasize that everyone in each of the teams understands and values the importance of honesty, integrity, and hard work.
It is not always what qualifications they have, but their attitude towards working which matters as Appt Corp helps to advance their careers.
For example, nearly 200 members of Atul’s staff have successfully completed his Apprenticeship Scheme, securing City & guild qualifications; and over 400, who were not fortunate enough to recognize the importance of education during their school years have taken GCSE Maths and English exams.
Charitable Work
Atul is also actively involved in the communities where his restaurants operate and he looks to lend his support whenever and wherever he can, ranging from supporting many youth football teams to carrying out regular litter clean-up campaigns.
Further, in the last 10 years, Atul and Appt Corporation have raised and donated more than £1 Million for Ronald McDonald House Charities, providing a home from home for parents of hospitalized children, by donating both a percentage of the annual sales and setting up other fund-raising activities.