S. Truett Cathy was born in 1921 in rural Georgia and grew up in Atlanta during the Great Depression. His mother ran a boarding house, cooking and cleaning for boarders from morning until night, and young Truett watched her serve people with almost no rest. He learned service in her kitchen and courage selling Coca-Cola door to door, even though he struggled with a speech problem. On his newspaper route, he learned a lesson he never forgot: it’s always easier to keep a customer than to find a new one.
In 1946, Truett and his brother Ben opened a small restaurant called the Dwarf Grill in Hapeville, Georgia. First-day sales totaled just $58.20. They bought used equipment, kept costs low, and closed every Sunday, a decision rooted in faith that remains part of the company today.
Hard times followed. Truett lost both of his brothers in a plane crash, and one of his restaurants burned to the ground. But the setbacks opened new doors. Using a pressure fryer and his mother’s cooking lessons, he spent years perfecting a boneless chicken breast sandwich. In 1967, he opened the first Chick-fil-A restaurant in an Atlanta shopping mall. He later said he had been preparing for twenty-one years to open it.
Truett grew the company slowly, refused to sell it, and chose restaurant operators based on character over experience. He also gave generously, founding the WinShape Foundation to support young people and foster families. He died in 2014 at age 93, leaving behind a company built on service, patience, and purpose.
S. Truett Cathy’s story is covered in Deeply Driven Episode #35.
Source Book
Eat Mor Chikin: Inspire More People: Doing Business the Chick-fil-A Way
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