Five Guys’ chief executive officer, Jerry Murrell, said he gave a $1.5m bonus to employees of his US-based burger restaurant chain because “I didn’t want anybody shooting me” after the company recently “screwed … up” a buy-one-get-one-free promotion.
Murrell did not elaborate on the comment, which he gave to Fortune in an interview published on Wednesday – but it came a little more than a year after the UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot dead on a midtown Manhattan street in what was widely considered a murderous rebuke of the US health insurance industry’s profit-driven practices.
Fortune’s conversation with Murrell revisited a two-for-one promotion that Five Guys organized in February to celebrate its 40th anniversary that proved to be much more popular than the chain expected. Five Guys’ app crashed as customers sought to take advantage of the promotion, and many overwhelmed chain locations discontinued the offer early, inviting backlash on social media.
And yet, I can still get a better burger for cheaper from half a dozen mom and pop shops in my town that all pay their people more than minimum wage.
Seriously, 5 Guys is high on my list of most disappointing burgers.
Indeed. I tried it once and it was a clammy mess that really needed the tinfoil to hold it all together. I don’t get the hype. It’s better than McDonald’s sure but everything is better than that dry processed gunk.
There’s some really amazing burgers from local places that are actually worth the money and cost less than five guys.
Ps the whole thing with the normal burger being the double was confusing too.
Yep.
Just stupidly expensive.
Currently, where I am, I can get a cheaper, and better, burger and fries meal… from a local diner… than from any chain fast food restaurant in the city.
And honestly, in about the same amount of time, as well.
Better is relative in this case. Yes, there are amazing local (typically brewery around me) places, usually but not always at higher price point.
But sometimes that greasy, made the way I want it, perfectly soaked bun is the only thing that will do.
And for consistency in both service and food across any and every location I’ve been in, at this point they are unmatched on their space. For someone with a sensitive stomach, I can eat their burgers without future repercussions - no other fast food can do that. Not even whatabuger.
If I see a 5Guys when traveling it’s like an oasis.
Let me take a page from Democratic advertising geniuses: hey, at least it’s not McDonald’s amirite
Everything is better than McDonald’s. Their patties don’t even resemble a real hamburger anymore.