BusinessWeek writer Stacy Perman has written a book about the western fast-food chain In-n-Out Burger. In-n-Out is a California tradition, and by far the best fast food that exists.
Perman observes that In-N-Out has prospered by hewing close to the stolid principles of controlled growth, limited menu, fresh food and regional focus -- with the exception of one store in Utah, its 232 locations are all in California, Nevada or Arizona -- set in stone by its founders, like commandments. (Harry died in 1976, his widow in 2006.) As a private company, In-N-Out doesn't release financial figures, though the trade press estimated sales in 2005 at $370 million -- a healthy sum for a small chain.
The intrigue is the machinations of the very-private family that owns the closely held company.
The Snyders established a line of succession skipping over their older son, Guy, in favor of the more stable Richard. That well-laid plan dissolved with Richard's death in a 1993 plane crash. The inheritance passed to Guy, who had a history of drug abuse and died from an overdose of a prescription painkiller in 1999. With Esther's death seven years later, majority control became vested in two family trusts. It will pass after 2011 to Guy's only natural child, his daughter Lynsi Martinez, 27.
What little has been said about Martinez for public consumption comes from the 2006 court battle between the company and Richard Boyd, a former executive who said he had grown close to Esther, only to be shouldered aside by Lynsi and In-N-Out Chief Executive Mark Taylor, the husband of one of her half-sisters.
That is the most convoluted family dynasty ever. And how much of INOB food contains poison I mean high fructose corn syrup?
Posted by: Melissa Dyrdahl | May 08, 2009 at 09:04 PM
Actually, one of the great things about In-n-Out is the quality of the food. Everything is fresh. You can actually see them hand-leafing heads of lettuce, slicing fresh tomatoes, and cutting up potatoes to make fries. The shakes are made from real ice cream.
I'm not saying the food is "good for you"--it is certainly a high-calorie and high-fat meal--but it sure is good.
Posted by: Drew McManus | May 08, 2009 at 10:18 PM
Reply to Melissa's comment: 3 things at In-N-Out have HFCS: the special sauce, the milkshakes, and the non-diet beverages (Coke, Lemonaid, etc)
http://ban-hfcs.blogspot.com/2009/08/at-in-n-out-burger-quality-is.html
Posted by: Amy | August 24, 2009 at 09:59 AM