Todd Graves is one of my favorite living founders. He owns over 90% of Raising Canes — a business that is worth at least $20 billion. Todd's maxim is "Do one thing and do it better than anyone else." It is impossible not to be inspired by his terminator levels of determination. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did.
Episode show notes: https://www.davidsenra.com/episode/to...
Made possible by
Ramp: https://ramp.com
HubSpot: https://hubspot.com
Function: https://functionhealth.com/senra
Chapters
(00:00) The Entrepreneurial Mindset: Sleep and Business Obsession
(02:13) The Birth of Raising Cane's: Overcoming Skepticism
(03:29) Inspiration from In-N-Out Burger
(07:17) The Importance of Quality and Focus
(14:49) The Journey to Success: Hard Work and Sacrifice
(19:21) The Early Days: Building Raising Cane's from Scratch
(21:23) Financing the Dream: Unconventional Paths
(32:28) The Relentless Pursuit of Success
(33:02) Commitment and Oaths: The Camping Trip
(34:02) Fanaticism and Relentless Focus
(34:53) Learning from Others and Continuous Improvement
(35:06) The Never-Satisfied Mindset
(36:04) The Importance of Founders in Business
(39:55) The Purpose Beyond Profit
(51:52) Financing the Dream: Credit Cards and SBA Loans
(55:47) Building the First Restaurant
(57:56) Expanding the Vision
(58:59) Positive Motivational Management
(01:00:51) Creating a Coaching Culture
(01:01:42) Intrinsic Motivation vs. Titles
(01:02:41) The Importance of Being Present
(01:06:35) Respect, Recognition, and Rewards
(01:09:12) The Power of Encouragement
(01:18:10) The Myth of Delegation
(01:22:57) Focus on What You Do Best
(01:30:07) Dining at Jiro in Tokyo
(01:30:59) The Franchise Model Debate
(01:32:50) Challenges of Franchising
(01:35:21) Building a Business Authentic to You
(01:37:07) Financing and Expansion Strategies
(01:49:13) Surviving Hurricane Katrina
(01:55:48) Lessons from Estée Lauder
(01:58:06) Final Thoughts and Reflections
