Five Guys Ethics, Philosophy, and Brand Success

Introduction: Five Guys and Its Ethical Reputation

Five Guys Burger & Fries is a privately held quick-service restaurant that has grown rapidly since 2003, when the company began franchising outlets (FiveGuys, 2003). Part of the franchise agreement outlines the company's ethical stance on a variety of issues. As a result of its philosophy, Five Guys has built a reputation as a leader in the quick-service industry for its ethics, particularly with respect to the treatment of employees (Swanson, 2012). The company also seeks to cultivate a reputation for ethics through some of its marketing techniques. For example, restaurants will often post on a chalkboard the name and location of the farmer who supplied that day's potatoes (Peckenpaugh, 2012).

Family Values as Corporate Philosophy

Ironically, despite the company's reputation, Five Guys never set out to be an ethical company. Rather, the family-owned business sought to adhere to the values of the founding family, who still run Five Guys (Weise, 2011). The result is that their values have been imposed on the company as a whole, for better or worse. In general, however, those values tend to fall on the ethical side of business, particularly with respect to employees and suppliers.

Because the original family still controls the business, maintaining its core values has been easier than it would have been had the company gone public. There was fear that the company's philosophy and values would be sacrificed when it began franchising, but that has not come to pass. Instead, when franchisees do not see eye-to-eye with the family on ethical and value issues, their franchises are bought back by the company, which has secured financing from private investors specifically to undertake such buybacks and build a network of corporate-owned restaurants (Weise, 2011).

Simplicity, Consistency, and Brand Value

The Five Guys philosophy, in addition to ethics, emphasizes simplicity. The menu never changes, largely because the family will not allow it. They actively dismiss any suggestion that new items be added, and they work hard to ensure that restaurants carry ingredients that meet their quality standards. There are anecdotes about how the company FedExed buns to Florida when the first restaurants opened there, because no local supplier could meet their standards (Weise, 2011).

This philosophy adds value to the company for a couple of reasons. The first is that franchises thrive on consistency. The more consistent the experience, the more valuable the brand becomes. Consumers relate to the brand, not to individual outlets, and when the brand is strong it can be expanded anywhere. At Five Guys, the philosophy emphasizing simplicity and homespun values is applied consistently across the chain. The second reason the philosophy adds value is that it is something to which consumers can genuinely relate. In some quick-service restaurants, drastic changes have failed and resulted in a devaluation of the brand rather than improvement — Starbucks in the mid-2000s is a well-documented example of this (Quelch, 2008).

Conclusion: Ethics vs. Food Quality as Growth Drivers

There are some businesses that have made ethics a focal point for their marketing, so the concept is not entirely refuted. Ethical marketing tends to be an extension of relationship marketing, where the relationship with the consumer is based on mutually shared ethical principles (Sirgy & Lee, 2008). If both restaurant and consumer share similar ethics with respect to duty, the consumer will be drawn to the restaurant. If we examine the marketing and rapid growth of Five Guys, however, there is little evidence to support the hypothesis that consumers are eating at Five Guys primarily because they admire the company's ethical views. Even when people appreciate the company's ethics, they show a preference for the food. The quality of the food creates initial visits, and from there the repeat visits that drive the quick-service restaurant business. Five Guys' philosophy resonates with consumers, but only because it results in food and an in-restaurant experience that consumers favor — including the simple satisfaction of knowing where their potatoes came from.

Works Cited

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