Completing our Bazaarvoice Press tour, I visited my brother in California. After a week of eating in nice restaurants, he thought I was crazy when I said, for our one night together, I wanted to have dinner at In-N-Out Burger.
Why? First, they have great food. I think there’s something about the fresh ingredients and the contrast of the thousand island sauce sweetness and the hamburgers are very salty. But they’ve had that for years.
In my experience many restaurants start to decline in quality over the years. They become complacent, unfocused, cut costs, cut quality and it’s a death spiral from there. Tony Romas is this way. But for In-N-Out, each restaurant up and down the CA coast (and I assume in other states) has been packed with customers every day I’ve visited them, as long as I can remember.
Who's the crazy balding guy taking camera phone pictures on a busy Friday night!?
I believe the secret to In-N-Out’s sustained success is they have creative discipline. It’s an oxymoron in business and very hard to do. Balance the execution and process with the appreciation for the human side of the business and product.
Evidence of this idea, I believe there are several principles at work that have sustained In-N-Out’s success.
1) Execute Processes
In-N-Out is always busy, which means they are busy in the ‘back office’. Everyone has a job and each job has a process. They output a lot of food and do it right! These restaurants are machines (I’m sure they’re cash machines too and if they were franchiseable them I wouldn’t be writing a blog). Do you have repeatable, executable processes in your business to output quality product and maximize use of working capital.
2) Focus the Product and Create Simple Choices
In-N-Out basically sells burgers, fries, and shakes. That’s it. That makes it easy for customers to choose and easy for In-N-Out to produce. This simplicity has tangible benefits for both sides. There are only THREE ‘value meals’. Contrast this principle to its competitors who are not nearly as busy: Burger King, McDonalds, and Jack in the Box seem to have a different menu item every few months in attempt to bring customers to their franchise.
3) Value Employees
In-N-Out advertises the fact that they pay great wages. They value their employees. Costco is similar, and publicly announces they pay a premium for their employees. Money can’t be the only motivation, but it certainly attracts the best people.. In-N-Out employees are always active, always smiling, always friendly. In-N-Out knows the business benefit of attracting the best people.
4) Develop a Community Brand
In-N-Out is a cult brand. People talk about their experience eating there. People who used to live in CA (like me) go back to visit and feel re-connected to their West coast roots. In-N-Out has developed a personality and a following – enough that they can reinforce their brand with merchandise. No one is buying Burger King shirts.
Companies succeed with different strengths, but In-N-Out is able to balance personality with process and execution. They have their left and right brains working. Similar to companies like Southwest Airlines, Costco, and USAA. That’s good company to keep.