Diksha Sundriyal
Starring Michael Keaton, ‘The Founder’ focuses on the creation and expansion of the McDonald’s franchise. The protagonist is Keaton’s Ray Kroc, who recognizes an incredible business opportunity in a restaurant business run by two brothers. He becomes so captivated with the idea of having a part in the business, if not the entire business to himself, that he does whatever he can to turn it into a humungous success. However, he doesn’t do all of it alone. People like June Martino become his rock, especially in the times when the business doesn’t seem to be doing so good. For Martino, sticking by Ray Kroc’s side came with huge rewards in the end.
Ray Kroc Hired June Martino on a Hunch
Born on August 10, 1917, in Chicago, June Martino exhibited a keenness and dedication that eventually helped her become one of the major stockholders in McDonald’s. She married an engineer named Louis Martino before the Second World War. While her husband was exempted from service due to the nature of his work, June became a part of the Women’s Army Corps, where she used the opportunity to expand her horizons. She studied electronics and math at Northwestern University, which would eventually help her in securing a job with Ray Kroc’s company.
By the end of the war, she had two children, John and Joel. Due to the complications in the health of their parents, the couple and their family had to move to a farm near the Wisconsin Dells. They were already thousands of dollars in debt and had to make do with whatever they had. Louis found a job locally, but eventually, something else needed to be done. Because her husband couldn’t leave the place, June had to take that chance. So, she packed her bags and moved to Chicago to find a job.
It was in 1948 that she met Ray Kroc after answering an ad about job employment. Even though she didn’t have experience as a bookkeeper, Ray had a hunch about her, and he decided to hire her. At the time, he had started a sales company and was focused on selling multimixers for milkshakes. Speaking about the reason why he chose to hire June despite her lack of experience, Ray Kroc wrote in his book, ‘Grinding It Out,’ that her presence “conveyed integrity and a restless native ability to deal with problems.” He found her “warm, compassionate” and with “a remarkable intuition,” which “bordered on psychic at times.” He also believed that June was a lucky person, and by keeping her around, he hoped that some of her good luck would rub off on him.
June Martino was Essential to Ray Kroc’s Business Ventures
Ray Kroc’s decision to hire June Martino proved incredibly fruitful when she established herself as one of the pillars on which his business would stand. She quickly made herself indispensable and remained so for many years she worked with Ray. When he moved into the McDonald’s business, it fell on June to manage not just his new business but also his old one, the Prince Castle sales, which still sold the multimixers. Over the course of her employment, she displayed her intuitions at work. She was heavily involved in recruiting franchisees, and ended up bringing in people who eventually became very important to the business. For example, she was the reason behind the hiring of Michael Quinlan, who eventually became the company’s CEO.
June was highly loved in the company due to her kind and easygoing nature. She always kept in touch with the employees and the franchisees. She knew everything about them and their families and would keep tabs on them like a friend would. This was also why she would often find herself in the position of a mediator whenever disagreements arose within the company, especially when they concerned Ray. Her hard work led her to be promoted from bookkeeper to corporate secretary to treasurer and eventually director of the company. However, none of it was without the sacrifices she made along the way.
The demands of her job often kept June away from her family. According to Ray Kroc’s book, she once told him how she hadn’t been able to attend a single birthday party of her sons or their graduation ceremonies. She even spent a few Christmases away from them because she was so caught up with work. What perhaps made it bad at first was the fact that she didn’t get paid enough for all the hours she put in. Ray Kroc had yet to break ground with the success of McDonald’s, but he could see how much June was dedicated to his business. Though he couldn’t pay her at the time, he did try to make up for it by giving her a ten percent holding in McDonald’s stocks. At the time, they didn’t mean much, but eventually, these stocks turned June into a millionaire.
June Martino Lived a Long and Fulfilling Life
June Martino passed away on January 29, 2005, at the age of 88, at her house in Palm Beach County, Florida. Her husband had passed away a few years before her. By this time, she had retired from public and professional life and spent her final years comfortably, focusing on the people and things she loved. She had retired from McDonald’s in 1968, and by then, she was already wealthier beyond her wildest dreams. The ten percent stake in the company turned her into a millionaire overnight when it went public, and her net worth turned to $ 5 million, which was after she cashed in $300,000 of her holdings. To celebrate the company’s success, she joined Ray Kroc and a group of others at the New York Stock Exchange, becoming one of the first women to be allowed on the floor.
Apart from her holding in the company, Ray Kroc also gave June a seat on the board of directors. When she retired, she was made an Honorary Director. She and Ray Kroc remained friends and would often see each other outside of work. In fact, the duo, with Harry Sonneborn, tried their hand at another business (this time a beer garden restaurant) in south Chicago, but it didn’t pan out. She was also present at Kroc’s 75th birthday party. Apart from her work, June was also known for her philanthropic ventures. Noting the importance of small ventures, she always chose to give to them rather than to already established organizations. She also harbored a love for classical music and was appointed the president of the Palm Beach Symphony. She used her position to make some great changes and additions to the place. She continued with her philanthropic ventures and tried to keep making the world a better place till her last day.
Read More: The Founder: Is the Movie Based on Ray Kroc’s Story?
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