In-N-Out Burger: rated high for its burger’s top quality and freshness
Based on many customers’ opinion and rating, In-N-Out Burger is consistently one of the best burger chains in the US. Known for its renowned quality and the freshness of the ingredients, it’s not a surprise why In-N-Out Burger has developed and retained a loyal customer base. In fact, In-N-Out Burger customers are something of a “cult” in the burger fast food industry. It is even the favorite burger chain of some of the world’s most respected chefs and famous celebrities.
It first opened in Baldwin Park, California in 1948, by husband-and-wife entrepreneurs Harry and Esther Snyder. In-N-Out Burger is the first fast food restaurant to accommodate the drive-thru service, where a two-way speaker was installed allowing customers to place their orders.
The Snyder’s simple goal of providing their customers “the freshest, highest quality foods” coupled with “friendly service in a sparkling clean environment” gave the In-N-Out Burger success, allowing them to open another branch in Covina, California a few years later.
For a long while, In-N-Out Burger remained like a small, family affair where the couple themselves supervised their business strictly to make sure that the foods they served were of top-notch quality. In the 1970s, this family-owned business expanded gradually. By the time of Harry Snyder’s death in 1976, there had already been 18 In-N-Out Burger joints in operation.
Despite the expansion, In-N-Out Burger remains firmly grounded
Harry’s son Richard had previously worked at In-N-Out Burger’s restaurants practically all his life. When his father died, Richard assumed the top position in the company when he was just 24. In-N-Out Burger’s expansion reached to over 90 restaurants during Richard Snyder’s tenure. In 1992, the company opened its first branch outside California — in Las Vegas, Nevada — signaling In-N-Out’ Burger’s gradual expansion away from home.
While In-N-Out Burger’s business was growing prosperously, Richard otherwise was against franchising the brand, and In-N-Out Burger’s business remained firmly grounded.
Unfortunately, Richard wouldn’t live long enough to see his company develop and flourish further — he perished on a plane crash in 1993, aged 41. His untimely death left his brother Guy to suddenly assume the responsibility of taking the helm of In-N-Out Burger operations throughout the 1990s.
During Guy Snyder’s six-year presidency In-N-Out Burger underwent a dynamic expansion to over 140 locations. Guy, however, suddenly died in 1999 from a drug overdose.
In-N-Out Burger exclusive interview by Huell Howser
Richard and Guy’s mother and In-N-Out Burger’s co-founder/matriarch Esther Snyder subsequently took over the responsibility of handling the booming company upon Guy’s death. At that time more and more In-N-Out Burger restaurants mushroomed beyond the West Coast, with locations in Arizona and parts of Nevada.
When Esther Snyder died at age 86 in 2006, the presidency was bestowed to the company’s vice president, Mark Taylor who was also a family friend.
In 2008 the chain opened its first restaurant in Utah, and then in Texas in 2010. In-N-Out Burger’s current heiress is Lynsi Torres (nee Snyder and previously Martinez through her second marriage), the only child of Guy and only grandchild of Harry and Esther Snyder. She assumed presidency from Mark Taylor when she was just 23, therefore restoring the company’s family lineage. Taylor, who is also Torres’ brother-in-law, was then appointed as the company’s chief operating officer.
In-N-Out Burger Heiress: Lynsi Torres One of World’s Youngest Billionaires
This transition made Torres presently the youngest American female billionaire. Like the rest of her immediate ancestors who inherited and controlled the company, Torres also has no plans to franchise the brand.
In the midst of the present business culture where companies are continually attracted by a quick buck that often sacrifices the quality of their products and services, In-N-Out Burger remains is a distinct company. It still adheres to its family roots and simple goals to provide their customers with the freshest, highest-quality food and the best possible service.