Executive Summary
In-N-Out Burgers, Inc. is one of the leading fast-food retail chains in the U.S., having over 200 stores in California, Nevada, and Arizona (Fujinaka & Stansell, 2012). It is famous for its made-to-order burgers that use fresh ingredients and for its efficient service. It has also maintained its basic menu since its founding in 1948, which consists of cheeseburgers, hamburgers, the Double-Double, French fries, sodas, shakes, and malts. Customers can also customize their burgers according to their preference. Every customer’s order is fresh as the restaurant does not use freezers, heat lamps, or microwaves. The restaurant is a non-franchised, family-run, and private company, and as California’s first drive-thru restaurant, In-N-Out Burgers maintains the business philosophy of serving customers with high-quality, fresh food with friendly and efficient service in a tidy and clean environment.
Some of the business opportunities that are available to In-N-Out Burgers would include franchising, going public, and expanding the business. Franchising would enable the company to expand rapidly and gain revenue from royalties (“Expand Your Business,” 2012). However, this would require franchising fees and resources for managing the franchise system (“Franchising Your Business, 2012), as well as the risk of losing control of the quality of the franchise’s products and services. On the other hand, going public would allow the company to gain financial resources and prestige (“The Advantages and Disadvantages,” 2012). However, it is a very expensive and difficult process and would expose the company to legal issues and expose the company’s information to the public. Lastly, expanding the business while keeping it privately owned and non-franchised can be accomplished in various ways that would enable the business owners to remain in control. However, this strategy would result in a slower business expansion compared to franchising and going public.
Out of these choices for business opportunities, the best would be expanding the business while keeping it privately owned and non-franchised. Opportunities for this would include opening new stores in various geographical locations; offering merchandise such as tee-shirts, mugs, and others; and offering new services like catering, event coordination, and rentable cookout trailers for corporate events and special occasions. This would allow the company to maintain control of their business and their philosophy, as well as their products and services’ quality and their company culture.
Expanding the business while remaining a private and non-franchised company would be successful as it would allow the business owners to maintain their business philosophy, which has been key to their success for over half a century. Their food products and their services are also what differentiate them from their competitors and what make them stand out. In particular, offering fast food that is made from fresh ingredients, is made-to-order, and that can be customized would appeal to health-conscious consumers. These days, health consciousness is becoming prevalent among consumers, in turn giving In-N-Out Burger an advantage as very few fast food restaurants offer healthy food. This advantage can be compromised by having other people involved in the company. As well, their business strategy obviously works so there should be no reason to change it.
References
Brooke, B. (n.d.). Benefits outweigh risks in franchising. Retrieved from
http://www.bobbrooke.com/franchisebenefits.htm
Expand your business with franchising. (2012). Retrieved from
http://www.franchisedirect.com/information/franchisingyourbusiness/franchisingasamean
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Franchising your business: Advantages verses the disadvantages. (2012). Retrieved from
http://www.franchiselawsolutions.com/library/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-being-a-
franchisor-advantage-of-franchising.cfm
Fujinaka, M. &Stansell, C. M. (2012). In-N-Out Burgers Inc. Retrieved from
http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history/He-Ja/In-N-Out-Burgers-Inc.html
The advantages and disadvantages of going public. (2012). Retrieved from
http://www.lewis-kappes.com/CM/FSDP/PracticeCenter/Securities/Securities--Business-
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