McDonald's, an American fast-food giant based in Oak Brook, Illinois became aware of the saimin phenomenon in the Hawaiian islands in the late 1960s. Maurice J. "Sully" Sullivan, legendary Hawaii entrepreneur and owner of Foodland Super Market Limited, had purchased and opened the first McDonald's restaurant in Hawaii in 1968 at his flagship grocery store. He opened several more McDonald's franchises, and for 12 straight months, McDonald's Hawaii became the highest-grossing group of franchises in the world. Sullivan wanted to serve his favorite meal, saimin, at his McDonald's restaurants, knowing all too well that his restaurants would boom with its introduction to the menu.