Small Business Champion of the Week: In-N-Out Burger

In celebration of Small Business Month, On Deck will profile savvy, well-recognized companies that all got their start as small entrepreneurial ventures. To kick us off, we’re examining a West Coast Cult Classic: In-N-Out Burger. Founded as a single location in 1948 by husband and wife team Harry and Esther Snyder, the Irvine, California company has grown to 258 restaurants spread throughout
Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Texas.

The Snyder’s founded the company with a simple mission: give customers the freshest, highest quality foods you can buy and provide them with friendly service in a sparkling clean environment. Then, to differentiate themselves from their competition, they utilized the new idea of a drive-thru with a two-way speaker box.

In-N-Out Burger is renowned for its employee-centered policies, wages significantly above state and federally-mandated minimum wages, as well as an “In-N-Out Burger University” for new hires and management positions. Still family-owned – and with a menu unchanged for over sixty years – Harry and Esther’s only granddaughter Lynsi Martinez now serves as company president.

At On Deck, we congratulate In-N-Out Burger on its many years of success, and encourage all small businesses to look at stories such as this for encouragement and motivation.