You know, nothing beats a great cheeseburger.
Dave Thomas was an orphan.
Eating hamburgers in restaurants was the only thing that gave him a
sense of belonging — and purpose.
When he was 8-years-old, he set out a plan to open the best restaurant in
the world and later founded Wendy’s.
But first, he had to take on a risk that would make or break his
career: turn KFC’s failing stores into a successful franchise.
In 1932, Dave Thomas was born in New Jersey.
His parents weren't married and put him up for adoption when he was six-weeks-old.
Several months later, he was taken in by a couple from Michigan
who kept his adoption a secret.
Still, Thomas never got the chance to know what it was like
to grow up with a real family.
When he was five-years-old, his mother passed away from rheumatic fever.
From then on, Dave's father struggled to find work.
He bounced from job to job and state to state and could only afford to settle in
dirty boarding houses or cramped trailers.
"He was a hard worker and honest.
But as far as being a father, he didn't have the time or the inclination."
-Dave Thomas
Fortunately, Dave's grandmother made time for him and sometimes brought him to work.
She was a cook and dishwasher at a white-tablecloth restaurant
that served family-style meals.
From inside the kitchen, Dave would watch the hustle and bustle
between the staff and the customers eat and laugh with excitement.
It became a pastime — especially when he ate dinner with his father in silence.
He rarely cooked and brought Dave to greasy diners for his favorite
meal: a mouthwatering hamburger.
"It was a substitution for other things.
There's something about eating, about the family tradition of eating together.
When people eat, they're happy."
-Dave Thomas
While Dave had a rough start to his childhood, he discovered a passion that
led to the inspiration behind Wendy's.
When Dave was 10-years-old, his father remarried and moved to Indiana.
Dave no longer felt welcomed at home, so he set out to find work
from anyone who would hire him.
He ended up working several odd jobs that he hated and didn’t keep for very
long — including a gas station attendant, paperboy, golf caddy, and pinsetter.
One day, he got fired from a new job at Walgreens after they
discovered he was underage.
When his father found out, he slammed his fist on the kitchen table.
“You’ll never keep a job!
I’ll be supporting you for the rest of your life!” he shouted.
At that moment, Dave vowed never to lose another job again.
Fortunately, he quickly found a new one at a restaurant called The Regas.
During the school year, he worked every weekend.
And during the summer, he worked every day for 12-hours.
But Dave didn’t mind.
He was happy to be working in a restaurant and looked up to the owners,
Frank and George Regas, as his mentors.
“As long as you try, you can do anything you want to do, be anything
you want to be,” they would tell Dave.
The Regas brothers not only motivated him but made him feel like he belonged.
But not long after, Dave discovered shocking news that made him
feel more alone than ever.
When Dave turned 13, his grandmother revealed the truth
about his identity: he was adopted.
“It really hurt that nobody told me before.
it is a terrible feeling to know my natural mother
didn’t want me.” -Dave Thomas
From then on, Dave became more determined to make it on his own and developed a
work ethic that helped build Wendy’s.
When Dave was 15-years-old, his father moved the family to Fort Wayne.
Right away, he found a new job as a busboy at a restaurant called the Hobby House.
There, he met his third mentor: Phil Clauss.
Even in a suit, Phil would sweep the floors and put away the dishes.
He was not only a hard worker but kind and humble.
“If I can do it, anyone can do it,” he would say.
Just when Dave was starting to feel at home, his father
announced they were moving again.
This time, Dave didn’t join them.
Instead, he rented a room near the Hobby House.
“Someday, you’ll be proud of me.
I’m going to have my own restaurant, and I’m going to be a success,” Dave
told his father as he prepared to leave.
“I hope you’re right, son.
Good luck to you,” his father responded.
At 15-years-old, Dave was on his own and working a minimum of 50 hours a week.
In one of his school essays on the pursuit of happiness, he wrote,
“Before I ever go into business myself, I am going to know my business.
I am going to start on a small scale and build my experience.”
He also wrote how he would achieve his goal.
“After I finish school, I want to join the army for a while and be a cook.
In this way, I will get more experience ... I will be all set to start the pursuit of
happiness with a restaurant of my own.”
Not long after, he dropped out of high school and enlisted
in the army a few years later.
Starting from the bottom prepared Dave for a risky endeavour that
paved the way for Wendy’s success.
When Dave was dispatched from the army, he returned to the
Hobby House and worked as a cook.
Over the years, he worked his way up to being the manager to vice president.
One day, Phil told him about a man he met at a restaurant convention
who could bring in more business.
“His name is Harland Sanders, and he says he invented a recipe
and a new way of frying chicken,” Phil said with excitement.
Dave raised his eyebrows.
“Why should we pay some guy who looks like a billy goat for his recipe when we
already have good chicken,” Dave argued.
For once, Phil didn’t listen to Dave and signed a deal to sell
Harland’s Kentucky Fried Chicken.
For each piece they sold, they would give him five cents.
Afterwards, Harland came into the restaurant and introduced himself to Dave.
“When he left, I had a sense this man was going to change my life,” Dave recalled.
Within a few months, the Hobby House became one of the first and biggest
take-out restaurants in the U.S.
People were hooked on Harland’s fried chicken and would wait
in lines outside the door.
Eventually, Phil opened four Kentucky Fried Chicken franchises in Columbus.
But his partners didn’t have any restaurant experience
and hired the wrong people.
After just a year, each store struggled to stay afloat, and
Phil was over $2 million in debt.
It was then that Phil decided to ask Dave to take on a risky endeavour: turn the
stores around for a 40% stake in each one.
Everyone, including Harland, told him he was making a big mistake.
“Listen to the Colonel, boy.
As your friend, get out now while you can.
Things are just too far gone here,” Harland warned.
By then, Dave was married with four children.
It was his only chance to make more money to support his family.
Within six years, he surprised everyone but Phil.
He managed to turn the stores around by simplifying the menu,
coming up with its iconic sign, and changing the frying method.
One year later, he sold his share of the KFC franchises for more than $1.5 million.
Turning a failing business into a successful franchise taught Dave
how to save Wendy’s in the future.
After Dave sold his shares and became a millionaire, he feared that
he would one day struggle again.
So when the opportunity came to lead operations for another franchise,
he didn’t hesitate to say yes.
But his dream of owning a restaurant was still on his mind.
So much that he would talk about how he would make the perfect hamburger
to his friend, Len Immke, for hours.
Eventually, Len grew tired of hearing Dave talk about his
plans instead of acting on them.
One day, he drove him to downtown Columbus in hopes of
grabbing a hamburger for lunch.
“It’s closed,” Dave said in disappointment.
“See, Dave.
This is what I’ve been telling you.
It’s tough to get a meal down here at noon.
We really need a hamburger operation,” Len pleaded.
Afterwards, Lenn told Dave he had the perfect location for him: a building
that he owned at 257 East Broad St.
Immediately, they shook hands on a deal, and Dave started
to think of a restaurant name.
He settled on Wendy’s — named after his red-headed,
freckle-faced 8-year-old daughter.
On November 15, 1969, Wendy’s was open for business and specialized in its
iconic square patties and Frosty dessert.
Customers were hooked, and within six weeks, the restaurant
was already making a profit.
Not one to sit back, Dave continued to think of ways to improve
the business and introduced the world’s first pick-up window.
He also launched a salad bar, the hot-stuffed baked potato,
and a super value menu.
When he decided to franchise, people told him there was no
room for another hamburger chain.
But he quickly proved them wrong.
Wendy’s went public three years later.
It also became the first in its industry to surpass $1 billion in annual sales
within its first 10 years and opened stores faster than its competitors.
Today, it’s the third-largest hamburger chain in the U.S.
and has more than 6,500 stores in 30 countries.
In Dave’s memoir, he shared key advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, “Your fears
and self-doubts are your personal traps.
You may say, ‘I’ve never done it before, how do I know I can do it?’
There are never any guarantees, but there are also no rewards without risk.
Talk positively to yourself because your own negative thoughts will hold
you back more than another person will.”
This is the story of how an unwanted child beat the odds and turned his passion
for burgers into a billion-dollar chain.
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