Jerry Murrell
Founder and CEO, Five Guys. On 1 show, 2 appearances. The Shows tab opens the full record on each.
founderexecutivefiveguys.com ↗
Jerry Murrell co-founded Five Guys with his family in Arlington, Virginia, in 1986. Under his leadership, the enterprise expanded into an international fast-casual brand with nearly 2,000 locations worldwide.
1shows
2appearances
32statements
7resolved
5supported
2contradicted
71%fully supported
12said about them ↓ Everything Jerry Murrell said on any show that made the record, most notable first. Each card names its show and opens the statement there.
Five Guys targeted 30% food costs by raising prices, never cutting quality
“The kids didn't know why we were raising the prices, but we would always say food costs would stay around 30%. Whatever we gotta do, if we gotta raise prices, we raise prices. And we said, if we have to worry about price, we don't want to be in this business.”
Five Guys funded early expansion using gross revenue share agreements
“We'd say, give us 5000 dollars, we'll give you a certain percentage of the Gross. Not, never the profit, because there was always too many ways to get cheap people that way. So I said, we'll give you a certain percentage of the gross. We'll give you the money …”
Murrell: Hidden real estate locations proved genuine customer demand
“And we said, well, if we can put it where, you know, it's hard to find, but if we can get people coming there, then we know we got something.”
Murrell: Five Guys would rather raise prices than exceed 30% food costs
“We would always say, food costs would stay around 30%. Whatever we gotta do, if we gotta raise prices, we raise prices. And we said, if we have to worry about price, we don't want to be in this business.”
Murrell: Five Guys perfected operations for 17 years before franchising
“Most franchisers start off to franchise. We didn't start off to franchise. We had no idea we were going to do that. We started off to build a family business, and we put 17 years into it, and we figured out how to do it right. So when it came time to franchisi…”
Murrell: Five Guys sold 3,500 U.S. franchises within two years
“And I think within a year and a half, or two years, we sold 3500. We sold the whole United States.”
Murrell tested food viability by picking hidden, low-rent locations
“Well, if we can put it where, you know, it's hard to find, but if we can get people coming there, then we know we got something.”
Five Guys refined its restaurant model for 17 years before franchising
“Most franchisers start off to franchise. We didn't start off to franchise. We had no idea we were going to do that. We started off to build a family business, and we put 17 years into it, and we figured out how to do it right. So when it came time to franchisi…”
Five Guys sold 3,500 U.S. franchise locations within two years
“And I think within a year and a half, or two years, we sold 3500. We sold the whole United States.”
Jerry Murrell and his family still own 75% of Five Guys
“We own about 75% of the company, me and my family.”
Murrell: Five Guys opened its first location with just $35,000
“Our first story put 35,000 dollars in it.”
Murrell: Five Guys was profitable from its very first day
“And we made money from our very first day, and we were breaking even, and we were paying our rent.”
Murrell: Five Guys' original potato supplier is now a multimillionaire
“Now he's become a multimillionaire because we buy all our potatoes from him.”
Murrell: Five Guys initially paid seven times McDonald's price for buns
“We were paying about seven times For a hamburger bun as McDonald's was then.”
Murrell: Early investors got a cut of gross revenue, not profit
“We'd say, give us 5000 dollars, we'll give you a certain percentage of the gross, not never the profit, because there was always too many ways to get cheap people that way.”
Murrell: Five Guys has built ~1,400 stores and sold out all US territory
“We've got about 1400 of them built out now, but all the territory in the United States is gone.”
Murrell: The Murrell family still owns 75% of Five Guys
“We own about 75% of the company, me and my family.”
Five Guys corporate owns roughly 450 US stores and 50% of 60 European stores
“Out of the, out of about 14, 1500 restaurants, we have a joint venture in Great Britain and France and Germany where we own With our partner, half. That's about 60 stores. And then over here, we own about 450 out of the 1400.”
Murrell: High school friends who bought early Five Guys stock became millionaires
“When I started Five Guys, I let three or four of my buddies that I went to high school with buy stock in my company, because I thought it would be a great thing for them, because they didn't have money. A little bit, they had a little bit of money, but not muc…”
Murrell: Mastering basic services like burgers, drinks, or haircuts guarantees steady income
“In fact, my mom used to say, if you can make a good hamburger, or serve a good drink, or give a good haircut, you'll always... Have something to do, yeah. Have an income.”
Thrasher's French Fries inspired the simple Five Guys menu model
“There must have been 20 places selling boardwalk fries, but only one place had a long line, and that was Threshers. It was, the line was a hundred feet long all day long. So me and the kids, that got into our mind, like, you know, hamburgers, fries, keep it si…”
Jerry Murrell launched the first Five Guys in 1986 with $35,000
“Our first throw, we put 35,000 dollars in.”
Five Guys broke even and was profitable from its first day
“And we made money from our very first day, and we were breaking even, and we were paying our rent.”
An exclusive potato contract made an Idaho farmer a multimillionaire
“A guy named Rick Miles was a small potato dealer out there, so we got a hold of him. And we said, would you sell us potatoes? We did not know at the time that he was small. Now he's become a multimillionaire because we buy all our potatoes from him.”
The other half of the tape: Jerry Murrell's own voice is left out of every number here. Other people bring the name up 11 times in 2 episodes across the shows. 1 statement on the record names them. every mention, with the transcript →
Who brings them up most Guy Raz 11
Statements about Jerry Murrell, by other people (1)
Every mention by year
tap a year for its mentions
How I Built This 11
2018 5 mentions in 1 episode
2017 6 mentions in 1 episode
One line per show, most statements first. The link opens Jerry's full record on that show: the calibration, argument clarity, speaking style and every statement made there.
| Show | Role there | Eps | Statements | Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOW I BUILT THISLEDGER | Founder and CEO, Five Guys | 2 | 32 | 71% 5/7 | full record on How I Built This → |