There are fewer and fewer businesspeople who hold to biblical principles these days and their ranks have shrank by one more. S. Truett Cathy, the conservative Christian founder of fast-food chain Chick-fil-A, died early Monday at age 93, the company said.
Dan Cathy, Truett’s son, took over as chief executive last year, while his father remained chairman emeritus until his death Monday. Mr. Cathy’s other son, Don “Bubba” Cathy, is executive vice president of Chick-fil-A.
Credited creator of the irresistible, succulent Chick-fil-A sandwich, S. Truett Cathy built Chick-fil-A from a small diner founded in an Atlanta suburb 68 years ago into the top fast-food chicken chain in the U.S. Known for its grounding in the tenets of the founder’s religious devotion as well as for its fried-chicken sandwiches, the closely held company has expanded to more than 1,800 stores in 40 states. Its sales have grown for 47 straight years, to $5 billion last year, Chick-fil-A says.
Mr. Cathy began selling soft drinks at the age of 8, and started a paper route at age 12. As a teenager, he and his younger brother, Ben, won awards for signing up customers for the Atlanta Journal. The brothers started their diner in 1946 with no experience in the restaurant industry beyond having worked as grill trainees in another Atlanta restaurant. They built their eatery, the Dwarf Grill, across from a new Ford auto plant, and served burgers. Ben was killed in a plane crash two years later.
After some early setbacks, Mr. Cathy invented the original Chick-fil-A sandwich in 1964, considered to be the first fast-food chicken sandwich, and opened the company’s first restaurant in Atlanta in 1967, according to a timeline on the company’s website. He expanded the company in part by setting his restaurants in suburban shopping malls.
Throughout, Mr. Cathy emphasized Christian values. The chain’s locations are closed on Sundays, none of its hundreds of restaurants are open on that day, to allow employees a day of rest. Its executives often said the chain made as much money in six days as its competitors do in seven.
Mr. Cathy founded a youth-ministry organization, WinShape Foundation, in 1984, which provides leadership training and college scholarships to young people. Through the foundation, 13 foster homes have been created to provide long-term care for foster children in a family setting.
Chick-fil-A also gained notice for quirky advertising and polite service. Since 1995, it has marketed itself with billboards featuring a cow painting the words “Eat Mor Chikin.” Order takers greet customers by saying, “How may I serve you?” responding to thank you with “My pleasure.” and employees walk around asking visitors if they need extra napkins or drink refills.
Cathy’s son, Dan, who is currently chairman and president of the chain, had told the Baptist Press in 2012 that the company was “guilty as charged” for backing “the biblical definition of a family.” Gay rights groups and others called for boycotts and kiss-ins at Cathy’s restaurants. The Jim Henson Co. pulled its Muppet toys from kids’ meals, while politicians in Boston and Chicago told the chain it is not welcome there.
Christians responded in overwhelming numbers. Breaking many of the restaurant’s one day sales records around the country. The flap did little to derail Chick-fil-A’s momentum, however, as it surpassed Yum Brands Inc.’s KFC to become the nation’s leading fast-food chicken chain in terms of market share.
The elder Mr. Cathy expanded beyond chicken in December 2013, with the opening of Truett’s Luau, a restaurant in Fayetteville, Ga., serving seafood along with some Chick-fil-A staples.
Mr. Cathy was most recently worth about $6.3 billion, according to Forbes, making him one of the 75 richest people in the U.S. He has received numerous leadership and business awards during his career and penned several books, including “It’s Easier to Succeed Than to Fail
Christian businessmen and women would do well to learn how to incorporate active faith into their professional lives. Mr. Cathy taught us that you can run a great business without being ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus or the Word of God.
