Five Guys Burgers and Fries: “Ingredients for Success”
Dr. B. Iannucci
Contemporary Business
October 17, 2013

Entrepreneurial Leadership
Everyone wants to see their children grow up and go to college and possibly become millionaires. Well that was the dream of the Jerry Murrell, but unfortunately two of the oldest sons said they were not going to college. So instead of paying for college he found himself paying for a mortgage to open a business where the boys can work and learn responsibility. The rest is history. Dave Kurtz’s (2012) wrote, “Five Guys and a Burger grew to 570 franchises in the United States and Canada.”
Determine how Five Guys’ philosophy sets it apart from other fast-food chains.
The philosophy that set Five Guys apart from other fast-food chains was that Jerry Murrell’s strong focus on the quality of the food and type of food served, and the customer satisfaction. Jerry Murrell once stated “Treat the person right, sell walk out the door and sell for you.” (Weise, 2011)
Analyze the original values for the start-up, and how it still remains today.
The original value of the company for the start-up was to have value and perfection within the company. This is still the case today. Five Guys insist on making the quality of food served (fresh hamburgers, hotdogs, and only Idaho potatoes for the fries) and customer serve a first priority. All the restaurants feature the same simple, red and white tile décor and no paid advertisement, which is done by word of mouth only all advertisement is word of mouth. (Kurtz, 2012).
Three factors that contributed to Five Guys’ success in such a short time and the effects
,the external markets had on the factors.
Three Factors for success in such a short time.
The three factors for success in such a short time was to sell a really good, juicy burger on a fresh bun, letting the customers be the best salesman, and employee incentives. (Inc.com) Kurts stated that, “The burgers are made to order with 80 percent lean meat always fresh and never frozen.”
Five Guys does not advertise its fast food chains, believing that the food itself is good enough to encourage consumers to promote the brand on the chain's behalf. The company has never undertaken marketing, before or after it began franchising, with Jerry Murrell noting of its early days the decision to "use our food to market our products," (Data monitor, 2010) "Treat that person right, he’ll walk out the door and sell for you," Murrell says. "From the beginning, I wanted people to know that we put all our money into the food. (Data monitor, 2010)
“Five Guys attempts to maintain high standards of customer service by employing mystery shoppers to regularly judge its outlets One area on which Five Guys allocates a substantial annual sum is mystery shoppers, using this as a way to positively appraise staff and keep standards high. Five Guys sends secret shoppers twice a week to all locations, looking to catch staff delivering outstanding customer service. Those that do are rewarded with a bonus based on how they rank, relative to their sister establishments.” (Data monitor, 2010)
Factors of external markets.
A businesses performance can be increased through factors of external markets. A business that increases its market orientation will improve its market performance. Coca-Cola to the menu was an external market that enchanced Five Guys and a Burger. Sam Chamberlain, Chief Operating Officer, said, “The interactivity, innovation, choice and quality that Coca-Cola Freestyle delivers to our customers is the perfect pairing with our burgers and fries.” He also believed that it made the dining experience to be what the customers expect and enjoy when they visited Five Guys. (Business Wire, 2011)
Ethical and social practices are part of the Five Guys’ culture.
Five Guys take pride in using the best meat and potatoes in their restaurants. In order to compete with the other fast food chains, they whole heartedly concentrate on the food. As a customer comes in the door, there is a chalkboard near the front counter, stating the name and location of the farmer who cultivated that day’s potatoes, used to make the fries . Almost invariably, that farm is hundreds of miles from that particular Five Guys location, but providing such information is a powerful psychological tool that further solidifies an emotional connection between chain and consumer. (Food Product 2012).
Although it hasn’t gone so far as to add fry origin information to menus, McDonald’s took a step toward greater transparency in January of this year when it began publishing a “Meet Our Suppliers” section on its website, providing a peek into the origins of some of the chain’s coffee, beef, chicken and potatoes, with video spots featuring ranchers and farmers.(Food 2012) Adam Baker, president and chief executive."We came from fine dining, and my partner Thomas is a classically trained chef, so everything we've done from the beginning is about the integrity of the food and how we make it and where we source it from," Baker said. (Business Wire, 2011)

References
Boone, Kurtz, D. (2012). Contemporary Business: (14th ed.); Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Data Monitor: Five Guys Case Study. (2010). Five Guys Case Study: Maintaining Growth in Fast Food with a Simple Menu & Quality Focus, 1-11. Retrieved 2013, October 19.
Food Product Design, Retrieved October 19, 2013, from http://www. foodproductdesign .com/articles/2012/05/burger-wars-part-2-ethical-and-transparent.aspx
Inc. com, Retrieved October 20, 2013, from http://www.inc.com/ss/five-guys-burgers-and-fries#2.
LIDDLE, ALAN J. 2012. "Larkburger." Nation's Restaurant News 46, no. 19: 18. Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 19 ,2013).
The Coca-Cola Company and Five, G.(2011, September 11). (9). Five Guys® Becomes Largest Chain to Roll Out Coca-Cola Freestyle® Nationwide. Retrieved October 19, 2013 from Business Wire.
Weise, (2011). Behind Five Guys’ Beloved Burgers, Data retrieved October 19, 2013. From Http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/behind-five-guys-beloved-burgers-08112011