Hardware Podcasts

Five Guys: Jerry Murrell

How I Built This · 5 Jun 2017 · 35m

What this episode covers

Jerry Murrell, founder of Five Guys, explains how he pivoted from failed business ventures to opening a burger joint in 1986 with his four sons, using their college funds as seed capital. He details the company's early strategy of using high-quality ingredients like peanut oil and expensive pickles, funded by a unique model of raising capital from friends and family through gross-revenue sharing notes rather than equity. Murrell describes the reluctant transition to franchising in the late 1990s, driven by his sons, and the subsequent rapid expansion to over 1,400 locations while maintaining strict control over food costs and supplier relationships.

Most relevant to

founders before launch and companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Five Guys, RexSpecs, U.S. Bank, McDonald's, Brenner's Bakery, Thrashers
Also
Franchising for Dummies

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