...Determine how Five Guys’ philosophy sets it apart from other fast-food chains. Sell a really good, juicy burger on a fresh bun. Make perfect French fries. Don't cut corners. That's been the business plan since Jerry Murrell and his sons opened their first burger joint in 1986. When they began selling franchises in 2002, the family had just five stores in northern Virginia. Today, there are 570 stores across the U.S. and Canada, with 2009 sales of $483 million. Overseeing the opening of about four new restaurants a week, the Murrells are proof that flipping burgers doesn't have to be a dead-end job. Four years ago, before franchising, Five Guys was just a little family burger operation with five locations and a steady, if cultish following, in Northern Virginia. Today the business is by some estimates heading toward $1 billion in value. Five Guys has 87 locations. Most are in the Washington region, but a hundred more will open along the East Coast this year, and another thousand are being phased in. Each store, the company says, pulls in about $1 million a year. How Janie and Jerry Murrell and their five sons, the Five Guys, so quickly bit into the nation's $58 billion-a-year burger business is a little bit of a burger whodunit. The Murrells can be gregarious, but they are given to moments of silence when asked how their business grew so big. Their success probably includes a combination of ingredients, though: keeping the business strategy simple (sell burgers and fries) while...
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...Burgers and Fries? | Successful Leadership and Entrepreneurship of Five Guys Burgers and Fries | | | | 10/28/2012 | Assignment 1: Entrepreneurial Leadership Contemporary Business Abstract This paper will analyze the business Five Guys Burgers and Fries to determine what has made this business and franchises successful. Five Guys operates in the food service industry and is among the top profitable franchises that offers a simple menu of burgers and fries as its main product. Five Guys’ is a family owned business that started in Arlington, VA that over time became one of the most popular places for fast food that did not require any marketing strategy to be a well-known place to eat. Five Guys’ prides itself of being such a simple company offering the best burgers and fries for a low-cost. Also, the business maintains a sense of integrity and ethics that continues to drive the business profits and keeps customers coming back for more of the burgers and fries. History There are plenty of restaurants available for quick choices of food and also price; one company has improved over time with being number one for a simple hamburger and fries combo. This company, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, are well known in the United States as a fast growing company that started from humble beginnings. The Murrell family, which consists of Janie and Jerry and their five (5) sons, help run the business from the beginning in Arlington, VA...
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...that the owners of the Five Guys Burgers and Fries have been able to accomplish due to the simple business plan that was put into place prior to opening their restaurant. We will see that the basic human principles about how we should treat others; will also allow a company to become successful. The success that has been possible for this hamburger and fries restaurant could have easily failed against the big name restaurants known for burger and fries, such as, McDonalds, Burger King, Checkers and Sonics. However, the company is has become a great success even through a tough economic recession. In this assignment, topics such as their philosophy sets them apart from other fast food restaurants, the original values of the company, three factors that have contributed to their success and external markets and how ethical and societal practices that they provide for their customers and employees. The Murrell family was a close knit family who supported their two sons who decided not to attend college after their graduation from high school. They had dreams of owning their own family restaurant. Their parents invested the money that they had been saving over the years and allowed them to begin their first business. Although they were not sure if the business would be a success or a failure, they were supportive of their sons ideas and dreams with the hamburger restaurant allowed them the chance to begin the restaurant that many of us know today as, Five Guys Burgers and Fries. The...
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...FIVE GUYS BURGERS AND FRIES: INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS Five Guys Burgers and Fries: Ingredients for Success Dr. Hammad Elbedour BUSINESS 508: CONTEMPORARY BUSINESS 27 October 2013 FIVE GUYS BURGERS AND FRIES: INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS Five Guys Burgers and Fries: Ingredients for Success Five Guys considered by many as the best burger on the market originated in Lorton, Virginia in 1986. Five Guys entrepreneurs were Jerry Murrell with his wife and sons, Forbes Magazine identified in 2012 as the fastest-growing restaurant chains in America, five new stores opening weekly (Boone). The philosophy of Five Guys has set this fast food chain apart from the other fast-food chains. One of the company’s primary competitive differences is keeping it simple and perfecting their limited menu. Five Guys was built with the intent of keeping the Murrell family together as a unit and those strong family values remain today. Each of the seven Murrells own equal company shares of Five Guys, totaling 75% of the company. The family continues to hold business meeting at 1:00 PM on Tuesdays at their Virginia headquarters and decisions are made by a unanimous vote. The Murrell family has remained constant on the simple concept they started their business; creating a better burger and while making a little money doing it. Three factors that have contributed to Five Guys success is their branding, business ethics and franchising. Five Guys quality centered brand...
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...Five Guys “The Standard of Excellence” Jalisa Williams Garcia Mills-Tate Strayer University October 28, 2012 Five Guys “The Standard of Excellence” Five Guys Burgers and Fries was started by Janie and Jerry Murrell and there 5 sons. Opening their first store in 1986 in their home town of Arlington, VA, the Murrells were set to take a competitive market by storm (Boone & Kurtz, pg.78). One would think that opening a burger joint with the likes of mega chains (e.g. McDonalds, Burger King), was out right crazy but determined to tap into this common market these classical entrepreneurs using $70,000 (Burke, pg. 95) as a start-up began their venture. Philosophy Jerry Murrell believed in two simple philosophies “Sell a really good, juicy burger on a fresh bun. Make perfect fries. Don’t cut corners” and “Treat that person right, he’ll walk out the door and sell for you”. These mindsets are what have propelled the company into what it is today. Without the customer or their employees Five Guys may not have been able to survive the recent downturn of the economy. Values Five Guys main focus is to provide customers with great service and great food. They believed that by making a quality burger and fries they would make the customer love them so much they would not have to pay for advertising because the customer will advertise for them. Word of mouth advertising is the oldest form of advertising and with the quality of their food this form of advertising has brought...
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...Guys Burgers and Fries: Ingredient’s for Success Right way might be the long way but it always pays off. Five Guys Burgers and Fries, one of the fastest growing fast food chain in the country. It might have took them 15 years to open up their 5 burger chain but it took them a year to open their 300 burger chain. Through their 15 years in business they learned what is right for them. Business - consists of all profit-seeking activities and enterprises that provide goods and services necessary to an economic system. 1. Determine how five guy’s philosophy sets it apart from other fast food chains. Jerry Murrell found Five Guys Burgers in 1986. The first store opened in Arlington Virginia. When Jerry Murrell was interviewed, he says there are five reasons why Five Guys’ Burgers is a big success. 1. Receipt for success is to make really good food with no corners cut. 2. The best sales man is the customer. Jerry Murrell says “ treat that person right, he will walk out that door and sell for you.” 3. Every position at the company has value. 4. Know what you did at–and stick to it. 5. Quality is everything. These are the five concepts that set Five Guys burgers apart from other fast food chains. If you look at Mac Donald’s they sell burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, burritos, ice cream, milkshake and they even have a breakfast menu, same as Burger King and Wendy’s. You can also look at Pizza Hut and Dominos. They are orig Hi there, i have essay which...
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...“Five Guys Burgers and Fries: Ingredients for Success” How does one start a business in an industry that is dominated by companies that emphasizes speed and quantity over quality? Jerry and Janie Murrell with the help of their sons have come up with a formula to compete and beat some of the top fast foods companies. When the boys where proposed “start a business or go to college”, they picked to be entrepreneurs (Boone and Kurtz, 2012). Jerry Murrell and his wife started Five Guys Burgers and Fries in 1986. They opened the doors to the first carry out store in Arlington, Virginia with a philosophy that is accredited for the success of Five Guys Burgers and Fries. The original values of the company still stand strong today. There are three factors that contribute to the success for the company. Along with the social practices of the company which has also been a factor in the overall success of the company. “Sell a really good, juicy burger on a fresh bun. Make perfect fries. Don’t cut corners” (White 2009). This has been the Murrell’s basic philosophy since the beginning of Five Guys. Five Guys is known as a chain that sells fresh burgers that are never frozen and are prepare when ordered. There are 15 fresh ingredients that allow customers to specialized there burgers just the way they want. The fries are fresh cut and also made to order. The fries are only cooked in peanut oil. When a customer goes inside one of the Five Guys stores they have can see a sign...
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...Entrepreneurial Leadership: “Five Guys and Fries” Professor Watts MBAE5302 – Economics and the Free Market December 16, 2014 Euronda S. Jefferson Five Guy’s Philosophy “Anyone can make money in the food business as long as you have a good product, reasonable price, and a clean place” (Pulizzi, 2010) It was this quote from John Willard Marriott that provided the groundwork John Murrell used to build Five Guys Burgers and Fries. Jerry Murrell, Owner of Five Guys Burgers and Fries, has had a love affair with burgers and fries since he can remember – but not just any burger and certainly not just the run of the mill fries. For this reason, Five Guys’ philosophy, and mission sets it apart from other hamburger chains, thereby creating a successful business model. Five Guys’ philosophy sets it apart from other fast-food chains for the following reasons. First of all, Jerry did not have the pressure like others do when planning to start a business. Jerry was not in a fuss to make money, nor have a strong ambition to monopolize the burgers and fries market. Contrary, Jerry’s goal was to send his two sons to college, and not start a burger joint, a business philosophy providing Jerry the leverage to make more meaningful decisions for starting his burger business. Second, to Jerry’s surprise, his sons did not want to go to college, a decision that he supported. The whole family decided and agreed to use the son’s tuition to start a burger...
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...Five Guys Burger and Fries Restaurant Five Guys Burgers and Fries restaurant started as a 1 restaurant operation located in Arlington Virginia. As an alternative to college Jerry Murrell decided he would build a family business that his sons would help run. He then told his two older sons if they opted not to go to college he would use their college money and put it towards a business and they would stay behind to build and help run the business. His sons agreed. The two younger sons also joined the family business and in 1986 Five Guys Burgers and Fries restaurant was launched. (Monte 2012) Although not the least expensive burgers in town Jerry Murrell, his wife and their sons were determined to create a place where people can go and have good home made to order burgers and fries. They set themselves apart from traditional fast food burger restaurants such as McDonalds and Burger King by not cutting corners and using the best and the freshest ingredients. Good high quality meats are always used to make burgers and put between daily fresh baked buns and lots of topping. Their hand made fries are cut from fresh patatoes cooked fresh every day. Nothing on the menu starts out frozen. Making these good dishes would not only put smiles on their customer's faces but keep them as returning customers time after time with family and friends. Their customers would become the advertisment for Five Guys. The Murrell family were believers in the keep it simple approach to...
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...is keeping them at home and save their college fund to start up a family business. With this decision Five Guys was found in mid 1980’s including all the children in the family into the business. In less than a period of ten years, the business expanded to different locations. Gaining experience, franchising the business to operators, getting recognition from its customers, the business grew up rapidly. Five Guy’s and their business are not limited to U.S. Today, there are about 670 stores across U.S and Canada. What is the company’s sanctified philosophy that enabled it to best compete with its counter fast food chains? How the original values of the start-up company remained strong today? What are the possible factors that contributed to the success of the business in such a short time? How is Five Guys responsive to its customers and the community at large? This case study examines issues brought for the discussion using the interactive case study “Five Guys Burgers and Fries: Ingredients for Success” and other body of literature as a secondary source. Five Guy’s Philosophy Five Guy’s strongly believe living by strong values is the key to good business. It seems that Murell and his family strictly adhere to the values they set at the heart of every decision they make and in their daily operations of the business. As we heard the story, the basic philosophy of Five Guys’ is that they believe in the quality of their product and the satisfaction of their customers. No matter...
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...Assignment 1: Entrepreneurial Leadership Ericka Bradley Prof: Bagher Fardanes, Ph.D., MPA Business 508 Contemporary Business 18 April 2013 The first Five Guys restaurant opened in 1986 in Arlington Virginia founded by Janie and Jerry Murrell The name Five Guys was inspired by Murrell’s five son’s Matt, Jim, Chad, Ben, and Tyler which are currently involved in the business. Matt and Jim travel visiting over 1000 locations, Chad oversees the training of new employees, Ben is in charge of selecting the rapid growing franchisees, and Tyler is in charge of running the bakery department. Most Five Guys restaurants have a simple layout of tables and chairs for dine in customers where there are bags of potatoes stack along the wall for lack of storage space and also peanuts to enjoy while you wait for your order to be ready. The kitchens are open behind the counter which is used for placing and picking up your orders. The restaurant’s décor is simply a layout of red and white checkered tile, because of the owner’s high concentration on the best juiciest burger on a fresh bun and perfect fresh cut fries. Five Guys uses only 80/20 fresh ground chuck high quality ground beef never frozen with no fillers. They do not use ammoniated procedures to treat the groud beef which means that there is no “pink slime” in the burgers. Five Guys purchase all of their raw materials from major meat suppliers in the United States that follow all procedures set forth by the USDA. The burgers are hand...
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...world of Accounting has seen several major scandals since the early 1990s. These include major accounting failures such as Enron, WorldCom, Adelphia, Tyco, Phar-Mor, Cendant, Computer Associates, AOL, Freddie Mac, ImClone, Qwest Communications, Royal Ahold, Health South Corporation, AIG, Lehman Brothers, and most recently the Olympus Corporation. Some of these have resulted in the collapse and dissolution of the company – Enron, Adelphia; others have resulted in a major restructuring of the company – AOL, AIG, Freddie Mac. Whatever the result, they have all been caused by accounting fraud – either “cooking the books” to hide major losses or to hide the theft of funds. It has also resulted in the failure and absorption of the one of the Big Five Accounting firms – Arthur Anderson. Besides the whistle blower who brought most of these to public view and the lawyers who have been involved their dismantling one of the other major role players, though unsung and unknown, has been the Forensic Accountant. We will be taking a look at this last individual or groups of individuals in most cases. We will look at what they do, their “required” skills and role in courtroom and possibly examine their role in a couple of the noted scandals. The Forensic Account What is a forensic accountant? Bolgna...
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...paper evaluates five published reported articles and the results are based on research organized from various resources including my personal analytical opinion about entrepreneurial leadership. Organizing a group of people to achieve a common goal using proactive behavior by optimizing risk, innovating to take advantage of opportunities when it presents itself, taking upon your own personal responsibility and managing change with a dynamic environment whereas the organization benefits as a whole, is one way to define entrepreneurial leadership. Based upon the readings and research I found you will see how the entrepreneurial leadership is illustrated in Five Guys Burger and Fries family owned business. During the 1980’s and 1990’s the Murrell family continued to stick to and perfect their simple system. Five Guys would be the go to place to get a fresh juicy burger along with fresh cut fries and all the fresh toppings of your choice, stuffed all between fresh baked hamburger buns. Murrell realized that in order to compete with the fast-food chains, Five Guys must concentrate strictly on food. The meat for the burgers---80 percent lean---is always fresh, never frozen! Burgers are made to order, with a selection of 15 free toppings including grilled mushrooms, barbecue and hot sauce, and jalapenos. The buns are toasted on a grill, and the fries are thick-cut from Idaho potatoes, cooked in peanut oil. Because Five Guys insists on top- ...
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...within the environment of the larger organization. This especially means within a business where those skills have been lost and replaced with a corporate mindset that focuses on process, systems and risk minimization rather than entrepreneurial behavior. A great example of entrepreneurial leadership would be Five Guys Burgers and Fries. Five Guys Burgers and Fries were founded in 1986 by the Jerry and Janie Murrell and their sons. The company came about when their two oldest sons decided not to go to college, so their parents decided to take their college fund to open up a tiny hamburger take out shop in Arlington, Virginia. Amazing after franchising in 2002, Five Guys grew significantly ranking #7 in the growth survey which was done this year. Five Guys franchise grew to around 570 in the United States and Canada. In Jerry Murrells business plan his philosophy was to concentrate on the quality of their product and the satisfaction of their customers. This would be done by simply selling a really good and juicy burger on a fresh bun, and making perfect fries and not to cut corners. This is how Five Guys stand out from all their other competitors. Five Guys burgers are 80 percent lean and...
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...Five Guys is a fast casual restaurant chain that originated in Arlington, Virginia within the Washington Metropolitan Area (York). The chain sells mainly hamburgers, hot dogs and French Fries (York). Five Guys enterprises has grown from a single family owned restaurant to a franchise with 450 locations in thirty states (York). Five Guys opened its doors to Arlington, Virginia in 1986 (York). The restaurant was started by four brothers who were given the choice to start a business or go to college by their parents (York). The burger and fry shop drew in a ‘cult-like’ clientele base which demanded the opening of four additional locations in the Metro D.C. area between 1986 and 2001 (York). At that point, the family decided that they should expand beyond D.C. to give more people the opportunity to experience their food (York). In 2002, they opened franchise opportunities limited to D.C., Virginia, and Maryland, and in 2003 to the rest of the country (Five Guys Inc., 2008). Five Guys philosophy sets apart from other fast-food chains by their uniqueness or originality. Their concept is different and like very well was able to compete with other burger restaurants. Their philosophy is a simple minimalist menu of freshly prepared food, served nearly the speed of a fast-food establishment. The business plan for Five Guys since 1986 has been simple, sell high quality food in a clean and friendly environment with excellent customer service, while not cutting corners (York)...
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