In-N-Out Burger

In-N-Out Burger's first location was opened in the Los Angeles suburb of Baldwin Park, California, in 1948 by the Snyders[9] at the southwest corner of what is now the intersection of Interstate 10 and Francisquito Avenue. The restaurant was the first drive-thru hamburger stand in California, allowing drivers to place orders via a two-way speaker system.[9] This was a new and unique idea, since in post-World War II California, carhops were used to take orders and serve food.[16]

The second In-N-Out was on the corner of Azusa Canyon Road and San Bernardino Road, the third was in Pasadena and the fourth was opened west of the intersection of Grand Avenue and Arrow Highway in Covina, California, in the late 1950s. The company remained a relatively small southern California chain until the 1970s. The Snyders managed their first restaurants closely to ensure quality was maintained.[17] The chain had 18 restaurants when Harry Snyder died in 1976, at the age of 63.[18]

In 1976, 24-year-old Rich Snyder became the company president after his father's death. Along with his brother Guy, Rich had begun working in his father's In-N-Outs at an early age. Over the next 20 years, the chain experienced a period of rapid growth under Rich's leadership, expanding to 93[19] restaurants.[20]

In June 1988, In-N-Out opened its 50th location which was located in Thousand Palms, California.[21]

The first location outside of the Los Angeles metropolitan area was opened in San Diego County in 1990, the 57th location in the chain.[22] In 1992, In-N-Out opened its first non-Southern California restaurant in Las Vegas, Nevada. Its first Northern California location was opened the following year in Modesto.[23] Expansion then spread to Northern California, including the San Francisco Bay Area, while additional Las Vegas-area restaurants were added. However, after opening store 93 In-N-Out in Fresno, California, on December 15, 1993, Rich Snyder and four other passengers died in a plane crash on approach to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California. The charter aircraft they were on had been following a Boeing 757 in for landing, became caught in its wake turbulence, and crashed. The ensuing crash investigation led to the Federal Aviation Administration requirement for an adequate distance between heavy aircraft and following light aircraft to allow wake turbulence to diminish.

Upon Rich Snyder's death in 1993, Guy Snyder assumed the presidency and continued the company's aggressive expansion until he died from an overdose of painkillers in 1999.[11] Under his leadership, In-N-Out's 100th location was opened in Gilroy, California on November 10, 1994.[21] He was president for six years, expanding In-N-Out from 93 to 140 locations.[20] His mother Esther subsequently took over the presidency.

In-N-Out Burger sign in Norwalk, California.

The company opened locations in Arizona in 2000 and added new restaurants in Reno, Sparks, and Carson City,[24] Nevada in late 2004. In-N-Out became a huge success in these new locations. In late December 2005, In-N-Out's 200th location was opened in Temecula, California.[21] In 2007, it opened its first restaurant in Tucson, Arizona. The store opening broke company records for the most burgers sold in one day and the most sold in one week.[25]

In 2008, In-N-Out expanded into a fourth state by opening a location in Washington, Utah, a suburb of St. George. By late 2009, the chain expanded into northern Utah with three new locations situated in Draper,[26] American Fork,[27] and Orem.[28][29] More locations opened in the spring of 2010 in West Valley City,[30] West Jordan, Centerville, and Riverton.[30]

In-N-Out Burger in Frisco, Texas, one of the first locations to open in Texas.

In May 2010, In-N-Out announced plans to open new spots into Texas, specifically within the Dallas–Fort Worth area with the first In-N-Out opening in Frisco and Allen on May 11, 2011.[31] The chain opened its first location in Austin in December 2013.[32] There are 18 restaurant locations in the Dallas–Fort Worth area, and four in the Austin area. These new locations in Texas required the company to build a new patty production facility and distribution center in the state,[33] according to company vice president Carl Van Fleet.[34] In March 2014, the company confirmed its first location in San Antonio.[35] The fall of 2014 saw the restaurant open its 22nd Texas location in Killeen.[36] On November 20, 2014, In-N-Out opened its first location in San Antonio[37] followed by its first location in Waco in November 2015.[38][39] In January 2017, In-N-Out announced plans to expand into Houston with multiple sites planned in the area, the first being in Stafford.[40][41]

In January 2015, In-N-Out opened its 300th restaurant, which was located in Anaheim, California.[42] At the time of the opening, the company had generated $558 million in annual sales and employed nearly 18,000 in California, Nevada, Utah, Texas and Arizona.

In-N-Out in Medford, Oregon, the first in the state.

The distribution center in Lathrop, California which serves Northern California and Oregon.

The company opened its first location in Oregon on September 9, 2015 (the same day as Harry Snyder's birthday) in Medford.[43] It is supplied from the Lathrop, California distribution center that was completed in 2006.[44] President Lynsi Snyder stated during the opening that they will continue to open new spots. A second Oregon location was under construction in Grants Pass during September 2017.[45] On August 21, 2018, In-N-Out announced plans to open a location in the Willamette Valley in Keizer.[46] This would be the company's northernmost location.[47]

On November 30, 2017, the company announced plans to build a production facility and distribution center in Colorado Springs, ahead of an expansion into Colorado, which is scheduled to be completed in 2021.[48][49] The first Colorado locations opened in Colorado Springs and Aurora on November 20, 2020.[50] On December 17, 2020, the two Colorado locations had been deemed outbreak sites as 80 employees had tested positive for COVID-19.[51]

In 2018, In-N-Out donated $25,000 to the California Republican Party. In 2021, the company donated $40,000 to the California Republican Party. In-N-Out CEO Mark Taylor, and his wife, Traci, have donated to Donald Trump's presidential campaigns.[52]

On November 24, 2020, In-N-Out softly announced that they were in the early stages of opening a store in Idaho. As of now, no new information has been released on when it will open its first store, or where in Boise, the city they hinted, they will first serve.[53]

Esther Snyder died in 2006 at the age of 86 and passed the presidency to Mark Taylor, former vice president of operations. Taylor became the company's fifth president and first non-family member to hold the position, although he does have ties to the family. The company's current heiress is Lynsi Snyder, daughter of Guy and only grandchild of Esther and Harry Snyder. Snyder, who was 23 years old and known as Lynsi Martinez at her grandmother's death, owns the company through a trust. She gained control of 50% of the company in 2012 when she turned 30, and nearly full control at 35 in May 2017.[54]

After participating in various roles in the company, Snyder assumed the presidency in 2010, becoming the company's sixth president. However, most major decisions are made by a seven-member executive team. Snyder does not intend to franchise nor sell and plans to pass on ownership of the company to her children.[55]

   Counties with at least one In-N-Out location (as of March 2020).[56] Since 1992, In-N-Out has expanded beyond California to Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Utah, Oregon, and most recently Colorado.

The In-N-Out Burger at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco

In-N-Out offers mobile catering in some Southern California markets.

Mobile POS systems are used during peak hours to help curb long drive-thru lines.

The restaurant has achieved popularity which has led to celebration by some when brought to new locations, and the opening of a new restaurant often becomes an event. When one opened in Scottsdale, Arizona, there was a four-hour wait for food, and news helicopters whirled above the parking lot.[72]

The chain's image has also made it popular in some unusual ways. For example, In-N-Out is still considered acceptable in some areas with strong opposition to corporate food restaurants, such as McDonald's. Anyone with a business interest in San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf district said they opposed every other fast-food chain except In-N-Out because they wanted to maintain the flavor of family-owned, decades-old businesses in the area, with one saying locals would ordinarily "be up in arms about a fast-food operation coming to Fisherman's Wharf", but "this is different".[12] California native and Colorado Rockies player Jason Giambi would often visit In-N-Out Burger when on the West Coast with his former team, the New York Yankees. He said he tried to open an In-N-Out Burger restaurant in New York, but was unsuccessful.[73]

The chain also has fans in a number of renowned chefs including Gordon Ramsay, Thomas Keller, Julia Child, Anthony Bourdain, Ina Garten, and Mario Batali.[19] Famous London chef/restaurateur Ramsay ate In-N-Out for the first time when taping Hell's Kitchen in Los Angeles, and it soon became one of his favorite spots for take-out.[74] Ramsay was quoted, saying about the experience: "In-N-Out burgers were extraordinary. I was so bad, I sat in the restaurant, had my double cheeseburger then minutes later I drove back round and got the same thing again to take away."[74] Thomas Keller, a fan of In-N-Out, celebrated with In-N-Out burgers at the anniversary party of his restaurant, The French Laundry.[75] Keller also plans on opening his own burger restaurant inspired by his Los Angeles experience of In-N-Out.[76] Julia Child, one of the first celebrities to champion the chain, admitted to knowing every location of the restaurant between Santa Barbara and San Francisco.[77] Child also had the burgers delivered to her during a hospital stay.[75] Anthony Bourdain reportedly said that In-N-Out was his favorite fast food meal;[75] later naming the restaurant as "the best restaurant in Los Angeles".[78][79] Ina Garten at an interview at Today show said "I have to say, I don't eat fast food at all, with one exception. When we're in California doing book tours, we always have to go to In-N-Out Burger. It's so good and I know it was Julia Child's favorite too, so it's okay."[80]

In-N-Out was one of the few restaurant chains mentioned positively in the book Fast Food Nation. The book commended the chain for using natural and fresh ingredients and for looking after the interests of employees regarding pay and benefits.[81] An In-N-Out food truck catered Vanity Fair's 2012 Academy Awards after party.[82]

Richard Bunkall painting commissioned by Haenel family of In-N-Out Burger

Jack Schmidt was the first person commissioned to paint the original In-N-Out located in Baldwin Park, California for In-N-Out Burger Inc.[83] His paintings were later reproduced on advertisements, shirts, and other consumer products.[83] The 2022 shirt design was created by Palm Springs, California artist Danny Heller.[84]

Bible reference on the bottom of an In-N-Out drink cup

Bible reference on the wrapper of an In-N-Out Double-Double

In-N-Out prints Bible citations in small print on areas of packaging (such as "John 3:16", "Proverbs 3:5", "Proverbs 24:16", "Nahum 1:17", "Luke 6:35" and "Revelation 3:20").[85] They are primarily found on the bottom underside of drink cups and the wrappers that hold their burgers together. This practice began in the 1980s during Rich Snyder's presidency,[65] a reflection of the Christian beliefs held by the Snyder family.

In 2006, a lawsuit exposed a possible family disagreement over the chain's corporate leadership. Richard Boyd, one of In-N-Out's vice presidents and co-trustee of two-thirds of the company stock, accused Lynsi Martinez and allied corporate executives of trying to force out Esther Snyder and attempting to fire Boyd unreasonably. Pre-empting the suit, Martinez, Snyder, and Taylor appeared in a December video message to employees, telling them not to believe everything they hear.[10] The company then responded with a lawsuit of its own, alleging Boyd had construction work done on his personal property and charged it to the company, as well as favoring contractors with uncompetitive bids.[11] Boyd was then suspended from his role as co-trustee and Northern Trust Bank of California took his place (as co-trustee) until a hearing set for May 10, 2006. However, in April, the judge dismissed two of In-N-Out's claims against Boyd. A trial date of October 17, 2006, was set but never occurred, and a settlement was reached out of court.[86] Ultimately, Boyd was permanently removed from his role as an employee and co-trustee.[87]

In June 2007, the company filed a lawsuit against an American Fork, Utah, restaurant named Chadder's for trademark infringement, claiming that the "look and feel" of the restaurant too closely resembled that of In-N-Out, and that the restaurant violated trademarked menu items, such as "Animal Style", "Protein Style", "Double-Double".[88]

The company learned about this from Utah customers contacting the customer service department asking if In-N-Out opened a location in Utah under a different name or if they had any affiliation with the restaurant in any way. Several customers stated they ordered trademarked items such as Animal and Protein styles.[89] Utah District Court Judge Ted Stewart issued a temporary restraining order against the look-alike. Chadder's opened another location near the Salt Lake City area and one in Provo.

In 2009, In-N-Out opened a restaurant in American Fork less than a mile from the Chadder's restaurant.[88][90][91] Per their website, Chadder's started selling a "Stubby Double" instead of "Double Double".[92] The Chadder's restaurants in Utah have gone out of business since In-N-Out restaurants have opened in Utah.

In-N-Out Burger has also been plagued by similarly named imitators in Australia that confuse consumers into thinking that the similarly-sounding Australian businesses is associated with the Californian-based chain.[93] The company would take the imitators to court for trademark infringement[94][95] and has opened one-day pop-ups in Sydney in 2012,[96] 2013,[97] 2016,[98] 2017,[99] 2019,[100] and 2022;[101] Brisbane in 2020;[102] Melbourne in 2014[103] and 2018;[104] and Perth in 2018[105] and 2022[106] to preserve their trademark rights.[107] Customers may wait for several hours before the doors open but the food would run out very quickly, sometimes in less than hour after opening.[108][109] Although In-N-Out may not have plans to open a permanent location outside its current operating region, the business strategy of having one-day pop-ups is to maintain a business presence in the country under Australian trademark law without opening a permanent restaurant.[110][111]

In-N-Out successfully defended their trademarks and intellectual property rights in Australia in 2020 against Hashtag Burgers Pty Ltd, formerly doing business as "Funk N Burgers" and "Down-N-Out Burger".[112][113] In 2021, In-N-Out filed a lawsuit against Queensland-based Rich Asians Pty Ltd doing business as "In & Out Aussie Burgers".[94]

It also appears that In-N-Out has used this practice in other countries as well,[114][115][116] such as in Auckland in 2020;[117][118] London in 2016[119] and in 2018;[120] Toronto in 2014[116] and 2021;[121] Singapore in 2012[122] and 2019;[123] Tokyo in 2012;[124] Shanghai in 2017;[125] Bangkok in 2018;[126] Hong Kong in 2015;[127] Taipei in 2016;[128] Vancouver in 2019;[129] Buenos Aires in 2016;[130] Seoul in 2019;[131] Berlin in 2022;[132] Dublin in 2021;[133] Dubai in 2021;[134] Petaling Jaya in 2018;[135] Cape Town in 2016;[136] Vienna in 2017;[137]

On November 6, 2015, In-N-Out filed a lawsuit against food delivery startup, DoorDash, claiming trademark infringement. Two months later the lawsuit was settled out of court in a confidential settlement. DoorDash no longer delivers food from In-N-Out Burger.[138]

In October 2021, the In-N-Out location in San Francisco was ordered closed by the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH), for failure to enforce the public health order requiring that all dine-in patrons of restaurants present proof that they are fully vaccinated for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The location had posted signage warning of the mandate, but the SFDPH received complaints that it was not actually enforced. The company's chief legal officer Arnie Wensinger stated that the company "fiercely disagree[s] with any government dictate that forces a private company to discriminate against customers who choose to patronize their business."[139] The location was allowed to re-open for takeout service only until it demonstrates "an adequate process and procedure for complying with the health order".[140][139]

Later that month, after an In-N-Out location in Contra Costa County was similarly ordered closed by public health for not complying with its vaccine mandate, all In-N-Out locations in the region closed their dining rooms and began operating with takeout service only. The locations attracted anti-mandate demonstrations in support of the company.[141]

The In-N-Out Burgers Foundation, was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in March 1995,[142] and classified as a "Human Services: Fund Raising & Fund Distribution" organization under the NTEE system.[143] Based in Irvine, California, the foundation "supports organizations that provide residential treatment, emergency shelter, foster care, and early intervention for children in need". Its grant-making activities are restricted to eligible nonprofit groups that are located or provide services in areas where In-N-Out has a presence.[144] Consequently, grant proposals are only accepted from applicants in a limited number of counties in Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah, Texas.[145] In 2010, the most recent year for which financial reporting is publicly available (and before the opening of the company's Texas locations),[146] the foundation contributed $1,545,250 to 231 grantees in Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah.[147] Grant-making is funded through donor contributions and In-N-Out-sponsored fundraisers; typical grants are between $2,000 and $20,000.[145]

In-N-Out Burger founded the Slave 2 Nothing Foundation in 2016 to "improve the lives of individuals and families affected by substance abuse and/or human trafficking".[148][149]