Cajun Fries, Bacon Milkshakes and Over 100 Flavors of Coke: Diving Into Five Guys' Success Story

The fast food giant, up until a few years ago, hadn’t spent a dime in advertising. Its praise, which came from, for example, the famous Obama appearance —who allegedly tried to order from the White House, only to be told they didn’t do deliveries and he would have to go down to the shop in DC — was fully organic and genuine. Nobody benefited from applauding Five Guys’ high product quality and service. Not Olivia Rodrigo, not Ed Sheeran, not Kylie Jenner. Meet the company that redefined fast food.

In the original story, five brothers—hint, hint—skipped college to start a small restaurant in their hometown in Virginia in 1986 with the money their dad had saved up for tuition. They were risking their entire future, but they were so confident in their idea they were determined to pursue it. The fast food industry was—and still is—especially tricky to get into. Because alongside entertainment, technology and fashion, it’s a glamorous industry, there is a lot of competition you don’t see in other categories, like house cleaning services. That’s why according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 17 percent of fast food restaurants close within a year and 50 percent within five years. 

On advertising: McDonald’s spends between 350 and 450 million dollars annually, Burger King 1.3 billion and Wendy’s 450 to 480 million. When you look at the numbers, it’s fascinating how Five Guys has managed to reach near the top in the US without spending such a big part of their budget on marketing. 

Instead, they spend a higher portion of their money on fresh products that’ll increase the quality of the burger, and hence, their reputation. They do charge a premium, of course, but their profit margins are usually tighter. Bacon cheeseburger, the most expensive one at Five Guys, costs 12 to 14 dollars, while the Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese from McDonald’s (the most expensive too) costs USD 5.50 to 7. If you ask me, it’s risky, but it’s true a lot of people are willing to pay a premium (and wait in long queues) if the food is higher quality and healthier: no freezers, all fresh and ready to bake. Even the bread bun is the recipe from the original restaurant. Can you believe it?!!!

Another big reason why Five Guys has succeeded and become America’s fastest-growing fast food brand is simplicity. The moment you walk into a store it’s all clear: white and red on the walls, brown chairs and tables, staff dressed in red aprons and few menu options compared to other similar companies. Only eight burger options and four types of fries. That’s it. Oh, and um, for whatever reason, huge bags of peanuts all around the venues.

The company started franchising in 2003. The reason why they didn’t want to start earlier was Jerry Muller, the father of ‘the five guys’, was scared it was going to get out of hand, they were going to lose control and worsen their reputation if the quality was reduced. However, they reached a point where they didn’t have a choice if they wanted to keep expanding at a greater speed.

So who’s actually a customer from Five Guys? Quick answer: everybody who’s anybody. On the Internet you can find Kylie Jenner’s Instagram post in 2014 when she and Selena Gomez were still friends and visited Five Guys late at night. Of course, if you’re reading this article, you must know about Obama being there from the introduction. Moreover, Olivia Rodrigo confessed to iHeart that after an important show, like SNL or the Grammys, she always gets a Five Guys cheeseburger. On September 26th, 2015, Ed Sheeran was featured in the cover of the Billboard magazine where he quoted: ‘Five Guys above everything’. Not only that, but in the podcast  Call Her Daddy, when he was asked his favorite American fast food chain, he immediately answered Five Guys.

They’ve got something for everybody: regular fries and cheeseburgers for the classics, bacon milkshakes for the brave, countless flavors of soda for the ones who are always seeking something new and exclusive, Cajun fries (typical in Louisiana) for the ones with courage and free, extra toppings for the picky ones. 

So what's really Five Guys' success story?

Everything about Five Guys seems counterintuitive: no advertising, more waiting time, higher prices, smaller menus, weird flavors…if we’ve learnt something from Five Guys today is that if you trust your gut and your instinct, and go by the road less travelled by, you will lose a lot of times, but there might be just one victory that makes it all worth it. And man, do the fries taste good.