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Executive Summary of In-N-Out Burger: A Behind the Counter Look at the Fast-Food Chain That Breaks All the Rules
In-N-Out Burger was started in 1948 by a man named Harry Snyder and his wife Esther. The original location was a small corner shack located In Baldwin Park, California. The company’s mission statement was the same in 1948 as it is today. “Give customers the freshest, highest quality foods you can buy and provide them with friendly service in a sparkling clean environment.” This simple yet affective attitude of Harry Snyder has proven very successful in business and life. In 1948 there was no such thing as a fast food restaurant. Harry Snyder’s vision of having a quality eating experience would soon explode to a much larger and valuable Company.
With the average American family at the time averaging about 2 cars, life in Los Angeles quickly became life on the move. Harry and other like him soon realized and discovered the need of fast food restaurants. This was the birthplace of the drive through meal. Harry, and advocate electronics expert, came up with something called the two way speaker. This simple invention is known today as how people place their orders in drive through. Although Harry Snyder was the true inventor of this new technology, he lacked a patent on his invention which soon let others in on what he had discovered. The expansion on In-N-Out Burger in the 1950s was a major turning point in Harry’s area of business. This was a point in time where other fast food restaurants were looking to franchise their name in order to make a larger profit. Harry believed that this was the best way to lose control of his burger joint. The book also goes into great detail about the Snyder’s family problems. Harry had two sons, the younger one who would eventually go on to become the president of the In-N-out company we know today. This shift in control would lead to many things including the hiring professional managers and also a marketing department to really take In-n-Out to the next step. Tragedy does strike the Snyder family when several family members died in a plane crash and left the controlling reigns to the only granddaughter, Lynsi Martinez.
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The INO menu is also a popular topic for discussion in Stacey Perman’s book. In 60 years there have been no additions to the drive through and in store Menu with the exception of certain fountain drinks. The menu only consists of 4 items. My favorite part of this whole book is the explanation of the “Secret Menu”. These items are all available for order at every location. Just another great example of how INO separates itself from the competition in unique ways.
The styling of every INO location remains constant. Twin palm trees can be found at every location along with single drive through lines. The palms trees were said to be a tribute to the founder Harry Snyder who was a California man at heart. Today, In-N-Out Burger has 420 locations that generate an estimated profit of $420 million dollars.
Full Summary of In-N-Out Burger: A Behind the Counter Look at the Fast-Food Chain That Breaks All the Rules
In-N-Out Burger was written by Stacey Perman, a staff writer for Business week located in New York City. Stacey Perman covers mostly small business practices and entrepreneurship. With a degree from UCLA and a masters from Columbia, saying that she knows what she is talking about is a serious understatement. IIn-N-Out Burger was started in 1948 by a man named Harry Snyder and his wife Esther. The original location was a small corner shack located In Baldwin Park, California. The company’s mission statement was the same in 1948 as it is today. “Give customers the freshest, highest quality foods you can buy and provide them with friendly service in a sparkling clean environment.” This simple yet affective attitude of Harry Snyder has proven very successful in business and life. In 1948 there was no such thing as a fast food restaurant. Harry Snyder’s vision of having a quality eating experience would soon explode to a much larger and valuable Company.
Harry Snyder, the product of Dutch immigrants was a hard worker. One who prided himself on his street smarts. Coming to America at such a young age, Harry is described as a street smart man who worked hard to provide for his family. His wife Esther was no exception, both being Dutch immigrants, they were forced into a rapidly changing American culture and forced to adapt. Growing up in the Great depression, In-N-out burger has grown to be what it is today from the morals of its founders, who had no other choice but to roll their sleeves up and work for what they wanted. A Street smart Harry Snyder one day realized that families in America were constantly on the move.
With the average American family at the time averaging about 2 cars, life in Los Angeles quickly became life on the move. Harry and other like him soon realized and discovered the need of fast food restaurants. This was the birthplace of the drive through meal. Harry, and advocate electronics expert, came up with something called the two way speaker. This simple invention is known today as how people place their orders in drive through. Although Harry Snyder was the true inventor of this new technology, he lacked a patent on his invention which soon let others in on what he had discovered.
This simple concept of people driving in and out for meals is how the company received its name. Harry Snyder can be described as a man concerned with all the little things. The book gives account of him sweeping the parking lots after a day’s work. He believed that nothing should go over looked. His obsession about minor details is the underlying cause of his success. Examples of this include providing a clean eating environment, never waiting on your food, and also paying his employees well above minimum wage to ensure he got the best quality work for his money.
The expansion on In-N-Out Burger in the 1950s was a major turning point in Harry’s area of business. This was a point in time where other fast food restaurants were looking to franchise their name in order to make a larger profit. Harry believed that this was the best way to lose control of his burger joint. Franchising also brought along the introduction to frozen beef patties and other multiple ways of making the food cheaper. In-n-Out burger believes that the in order to achieve the best quality food, that the ingredients should also be top shelf. In-n-Out burger still remains as one of very few who hire their own butchers to select the finest meat available. The company has stayed true to these beliefs, not one location will anyone find a microwave or freezer. The expansion of the number of locations was slow compared to others. The main reason for this is Harry would never open a new location without having the money out right to pay for it. Expansion also was dependent on the fact that new managers of these locations were up to par in Harry’s eyes.
Some might ask why take the limited expansion route when there is so much money to be made franchising and spreading locations across the country. The book gives many reasons for this but emphasizes that it is because of their ingredients. Since no INO locations have freezers, meat and potatoes have to be delivered fresh daily. All locations are within a 500 mile radius of each other insuring that each location is up to par with the INO requirements. Another main reason for locations to be confined to only 4 states in the east is management. Every single manager is required to go through a vigorous training program.
The book also goes into great detail about the Snyder’s family problems. Harry had two sons, the younger one who would eventually go on to become the president of the In-N-out company we know today. This shift in control would lead to many things including the hiring professional managers and also a marketing department to really take In-n-Out to the next step. Tragedy does strike the Snyder family when several family members died in a plane crash and left the controlling reigns to the only granddaughter, Lynsi Martinez. Lynsi is the current CEO of the company and still resides there today. The book goes to great lengths to make sure you know this complete history of the In-N-Out business and family structure.
The book then shifts to telling the real story of the In-N-Out we all know of today. The beliefs and the many rule breaking policies that are in place as of now, that seem to go against all logic and ways of other fast food brands. The family of the Snyder’s being Christian, many people find and discuss why it is that bible verses are printed on every burger wrapper and cup that In-N-Out currently serves. Debate to whether this was a good idea is still up to the air. Being a California company, the idea of printing Christian bible verses was and still is an oxymoron when looking at the culture of California. The following passage is the most popular and appears on every burger wrapper, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with me.” These passages started printing in 1987 as a tribute to its founder Harry.
Another quality of INO is something that’s has been there since the begging, polite employees play a major role in the companies identity and also the beliefs of Harry Snyder. Being from Louisiana, I think the best comparison is the employees at raising canes. The employees now days at every location are paid well above minimum wage. Every starting employee will make nothing under $10 per hour. Also worthy of mention is the lucrative bonuses managers receive for meeting goals. The book describes trips to Europe and Australia as some of the many rewards given to managers who meet their goals.
The INO menu is also a popular topic for discussion in Stacey Perman’s book. In 60 years there have been no additions to the drive through and in store Menu with the exception of certain fountain drinks. The menu only consists of 4 items. My favorite part of this whole book is the explanation of the “Secret Menu”. These items are all available for order at every location. Just another great example of how INO separates itself from the competition in unique ways.
The secret menu also has another secret to it. You can order “Fries well done”, or “Fries Light”. These menu items and the fact that every burger is not made until you order it really give the customer the feeling that they are getting a custom experience.
Price comparison is also another topic of INO. A standard Double Double with cheese only runs the consumer about $2.75. A modest price compared to the quality of food you receive. Also having visited the state of California, where prices are considerably higher than Louisiana, A whole meal ran me less than 6 dollars. This hasn’t changed much since the first Double Double was sold for $.25. Every item ordered at INO can be considered part of the Dollar Menu most fast food customers are use to.
The styling of every INO location remains constant. Twin palm trees can be found at every location along with single drive through lines. The palms trees were said to be a tribute to the founder Harry Snyder who was a California man at heart. The color schemes remain constant with the use of white, red, and yellow. The layout of restaurants remains constant with a few exceptions. The food and supplies are kept in a separate building. The book describes as it not being an uncommon thing for the customer having to wait longer for their order due to employees having to restock on supplies. The interiors are one thing that remains constant no matter where you visit. Each location has a standard multiple register layout and waiting area with the addition of table, booth, and even bar seating.
Today, In-N-Out Burger has 420 locations that generate an estimated profit of $420 million dollars. This seems large but when compare to such competitors as McDonald’s, INO profit stream gets crushed. To give some comparison McDonald’s has around 31,000 locations worldwide and has sees profits close to $21 billion dollars per year. Even though McDonald’s is the number one burger producer in the world, In-N-out Burger is estimated to be in a close second with burger king. This is a pretty impressive feet looking at the number of location and their geographical area they operate in, and also INO limited menu. In-N-Out Burger recently was called the best burger in the nation according to Zagat survey.
The customers play the biggest role in the success of In-N-Out Burger. With unbelievable customer loyalty, the customers love and loyalty for the burgers are compared to rock bands groupies. Although INO is limited on its advertising and marketing efforts, the main factor in INO’s success is word of mouth. Although INO has used television commercials and billboards in their marketing strategy, it is extremely modest when compared to what lengths it competitors go through to advertise their burgers. The chain has never hired spokesman or celebrity figures to promote it product mainly because it has never needed to. This has not stopped some of Hollywood’s most famous residents on record raving about this once small town burger joint.
The book also identifies many imitators who have tried to copy INO whole production process. The book refers to a man who hired 8 moles to actually train and work at In-N-Out Burger. These moles did everything from stealing the training manuals to taking pictures of actual INO locations. Needless to say this person try to open his copy line of burger joints called “Lightning Burger”. In-N-Out quickly caught on to his scheme and took him to court for copyright infringement. The judge ruled in their favored and fined the man $250,000 and also stipulated that he could never open another burger restaurant for as long as he lived.
Personal Insights
In my research, I have found and read other reviews on Stacey Perman’s book. Most of what I have found is nothing but good. Many people think the story she told at the depth she told it was remarkable. I did find several reviews that people said there was more than just Harry and Esther Snyder that worked in the beginning to make in and out what it is today. This quote by Helen Rosner sums up my reviews, “the author of a book about one of the most beloved and lauded burger restaurants in quite possibly the entire world doesn’t, herself, like burgers.”
Rosner, Helen. “Doing Business Animal-Style.” Web log post. EAT ME DAILY. 12 Feb. 2009. Web. 28 Apr. 2010. .
I think the author is accurate in her writings. There will always be underlying sources to anything you decide to investigate in the business world. The amount of detail she goes into is unbelievable. The book will remain relevant since it’s a story about how a business came about. There are something’s though that are subject to change. The simplest example is that in the future it can almost be certain that In-N-Out Burger will be in more than 4 states nationwide.
Ten concrete thing that’s managers can take away from this book are as follows: The quality and cleanliness of your establishment, treating your employees with respect, making sure the customers is always happy, the downside of franchising your business, better ingredients make a better product, copy right and patent and new breakthrough, family owned operations can lead down the wrong path, customizable products for customers, making sure your managers reflect your personal views, and opportunities are always around the corner. If I were the author I would have spent a lot more time explaining how In-N-out burger came to be instead of all the boring family history that got it to where it is now. I would have also included pictures; almost 300 pages of descriptions get boring. I would also have done the title different, people won’t know if you’re talking about the name of the restaurant chain or the book that has been written and named the same thing. Reading this book made me think differently about this topic in the ways of how we eat as a nation and how we pay and treat our customers and employees. I will apply what I have learned in this book in my career by following the beliefs that harry Snyder had, the customers should always be treated with respect, employee satisfaction boosts productivity and to not overlook the tiny details.
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David C. Wyld (dwyld@selu.edu) is the Robert Maurin Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. He is a management consultant, researcher/writer, and executive educator. His blog, Wyld About Business, can be viewed at http://wyld-business.blogspot.com/.
Summary and Review of In-n-out Burger: A Behind The Counter Look at The Fast Chain That Breaks All The Rules
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