Jerry Murrell decided to create a burger restaurant with his four sons in Arlington, Virginia. Jerry wanted to help his family and sons so he gave his sons the choice to either go to college or start a business with the money the family had saved for their college. The family decided to start a burger restaurant and they founded Five Guys. They focused on keeping a simple menu by making fresh burgers with quality ingredients served with hand cut fries.

The first Five Guys location that Jerry opened with his sons was in Arlington, Virginia in the Arlington Westmont Shopping Center which at the time was a strip mall. For their original shop, they were strategically positioned in the shop next to the bakery that provided the buns to Five Guys. While there was no space for dining within the restaurant, Five Guys capitalized on the limited space by making genuine connections with customers and creating a welcoming restaurant.

In the How I Built This podcast episode, Jerry explains how it’s important to hire the right people and create a culture centered around your company's values (Five Guys). When first creating Five Guys, Jerry put an emphasis on putting his sons in positions of leadership and power and facilitating their growth in the family-owned business. Five Guys also stresses the importance of good training and maintaining the high quality food and service they have served since Day 1 of their restaurant.

As described in the How I Built This podcast, Five Guys focuses on investing in high end and durable equipment that is equipped to create an efficient and quality burger making environment. Also, like most successful restaurants, Five Guys makes sure to locate their individual locations in strategic spots like on busy streets, shopping malls, or densely populated areas.