The 90s are back with a bang! Literally. Once again, people are walking around with their bangs parted in the middle, just like David Beckham, Nick Carter and Leonardo DiCaprio did thirty years ago. It just so happens that the iconic hairstyle looks a lot like another icon, one of the world’s most recognized logos – the McDonald’s Golden Arches.

To celebrate the comeback of the ‘do, we decided to hijack it by paying a tribute to all our ambassadors, old and new. As a part of our celebration, we launched our very own, McDonald’s certified barber shop, to make it possible for anyone to get the iconic hairdo.

The appointments took place online, where a hairdresser helped people trim and style the ultimate Golden M, safely from home. The hair salon was fully booked within two hours of the launch.

We also built an app, The Golden M Detector, that used AI and machine learning to detect Golden M:s. People with the ‘do could use it to get a free Big Mac by posting their photo on Instagram and tagging it with #mcdonalds. If the AI didn’t find a Golden M, people were advised to book an appointment at our Golden M Barber Shop, or watch the official YouTube tutorial on how to get the ‘do.

The campaign has more than 600 000 000 unique media impressions to date.