In the second installment of our series, Truett Cathy talks about Chick-Fil-A’s Closed-On-Sunday policy, business ethics, and corporate purpose. As I wrote in the first installment, Chick-Fil-A is one of those rare companies that made the decision from the start to do business God’s way and continue to hold fast to that philosophy today. You can really see this shine through in this video.
Truett Cathy on Being a Christian Entrepreneur (part 2)
This is the second video of four in this series. In part 1, we learned about Truett Cathy’s early life, and ended just as he and his brother had launched their first restaurant.
Selected Highlights from the Video
Here are some of the things I liked from the video that I thought you might too.
The Dwarf House – Chick-Fil-A’s Humble Beginnings
After their time in the service, Truett and his brother, Ben, pooled together $4,000 and took out a loan for $6,600. They used this money to open an diner outside of Atlanta, GA known as The Dwarf Grill (later renamed to The Dwarf House). It was from these humble beginnings that Chick-Fil-A would ultimately grow.
Chick-Fil-A’s Closed-On-Sunday Policy
Truett Cathy decided with his first restaurant that he would close the doors on Sundays. The Closed-On-Sunday policy has been in place ever since, and he has made the policy as much of a part of Chick-Fil-A’s branding efforts as the chicken sandwich itself.
Truett Cathy says it’s one of the best business decisions he ever made.
Truett Cathy on Business Ethics
There’s no such thing as business ethics – it’s people’s ethics. It’s people that cause things to happen. When you hear about a business failing, or a business succeeding, but a business does not fail or succeed. It is the people that makes the difference.
Chick-Fil-A’s Corporate Purpose
To glorify God by being a faithful steward to all that is entrusted to us.
To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-Fil-A.
Wow! What a great corporate mission statement. I know that it doesn’t match what most textbook definitions would say is required, but I still love it.
Additional Resources
If you’d like to know more about Truett Cathy or Chick-Fil-A’s story check out these books:
- How Did You Do It, Truett?
- It’s Better to Build Boys than Mend Men
- Eat Mor Chikin: Inspire More People
- The Generosity Factor: Discover the Joy of Giving Your Time, Talent, and Treasure
Come back tomorrow as we finish with this series.
Related posts:
- Chick-Fil-A Week at The Christian Entrepreneur What can entrepreneurs learn from the inventor of the chicken sandwich? It turns out quite a bit. Join us for...
- Why a Closed-on-Sunday Policy is Good Business Can closing the doors of your business once a week really be a good business practice? How has Chick-Fil-A done...
- Truett Cathy on Being a Christian Entrepreneur (part 1) This video is the first of three installments of Chick-Fil-A founder Truett Cathy addressing the 2006 Annual Businessmen Committed to...
- Truett Cathy on Being a Christian Entrepreneur (part 3) As this series comes to a close, we are reminded by Truett Cathy's giving back to his community of the...
- How You Respond to a Thank You Matters Do the words we use to respond to a customer's thank you really matter? I used to think it didn't,...
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
It is amazing to see their sunday closure. We could gain so much if we followed his example and 'closed down' our spending, shopping and busyness on just one day a week.
As Christians, it makes a lot of sense, but is it good business as entrepreneurs? I have another post going up in about an hour that looks at the Closed-On-Sunday policy.
Brad,
My husband and I took a trip down south a couple of months ago, and that was the first time I had heard of Chick-Fil-A. I didn't realize the owner was a Christian. It's great about the closed on Sunday policy.
I had not heard of them either when I lived in Indiana, but quickly learned about them when I moved to Texas. They were (are) very involved with KLTY, the Christian radio station here, and sponsored many of their events. They are very active in charity work as well.