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FOUNDER AND CEO, FIVE GUYS ENTERPRISES, ALEXANDRIA
FOUNDER AND CEO, FIVE GUYS ENTERPRISES, ALEXANDRIA
Virginia Business// August 29, 2024//
As a young student in Michigan, Murrell’s academic struggles prompted a warning from a nun at his Catholic school: He would end up flipping burgers.
It took a few years, during which he earned an economics degree from the University of Michigan, worked in life insurance, got married twice and had five sons. But eventually the nun’s premonition came true, and Murrell, wife Janie and their sons opened a carryout burger joint in Arlington in 1986. By 2001, the family owned five restaurants in the Washington, D.C., area, and the following year they began marketing Five Guys franchise opportunities.
Today, there are more than 1,800 Five Guys locations across North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, with another 1,500 in development. In June, it opened its first location in an international airport, at Dubai International.
According to the chain, Five Guys restaurants serve up 165 million burgers each year. In 2023, the 5,000 employee-strong company made it onto Forbes’ list of the World’s Best Employers.
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