Ray Kroc

Ray Kroc: McDonald's isn't in the hamburger business, it's in real estate

Sam retells the scene from The Founder where an advisor tells Ray Kroc he doesn't understand his own business: the hamburgers exist to get people to come to real estate that McDonald's owns. That single reframing changed everything.

“And the guy goes, wait a minute, I don't think you understand what business you're in. And Ray Kroc goes, what are you talking about? I sell cheeseburgers. He goes, No, no, no, you're not in the hamburger business. You're in the real estate business. And then he like, his mind switches and then he goes, oh my God, you're right. The hamburgers simply get people to come to real estate and I own all the real estate.”