7 Fast Food Business Success Stories [2024]

Pat Walls

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Updated: November 1st, 2023

Start A Fast Food Business

Fast food kiosks utilize ordering kiosks where patrons order food before taking a seat. The business model cuts the wait times by offering faster service and sending orders directly to the kitchen.

Starting a food kiosk allows you to reach a wider audience and comes with a reduced burden on staff. Therefore, food kiosks are a low-expense business with the potential to generate higher profits.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a fast food business:

1. Shake Shack ($740M/year)

How much they make: $740M/year
Current team size: 3386

Shake Shack SuccessStory

Shake Shack went from a single hot dog stand to a global fast food chain with over 270 locations thanks to its fresh, high-quality, and delicious food at an incredible price.

About

They started Shake Shack over 20 years ago

Revenue

They grew the business to $61.7M/month

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2. The Vet Chef ($417K/year)

How much they make: $417K/year
How much did it cost to start: $41.2K
Current team size:

How to Start $417K/Year Food Truck Business

This case study highlights how the Vet Chef food truck business, completely established, operated, and managed by veterans, earns more than $400,000 annually and is expanding.

About

They started The Vet Chef almost 9 years ago

Revenue

They grew the business to $34.8K/month

Costs

It cost $41200 to start the business

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Learn more about starting a fast food business:

Where to start?

-> How much does it cost to start a fast food business?
-> Pros and cons of a fast food business

Need inspiration?

-> Examples of established fast food business
-> Marketing ideas for a fast food business
-> Fast food business slogans
-> Fast food business names

Other resources

3. Aybla Grill ($648K/year)

How much they make: $648K/year
How much did it cost to start: $20K
Current team size:

$54K/Month Food Truck Business

From Syria to Portland: How one restaurateur started with $20K and now runs a successful business with 3 food trucks and average monthly revenue of $50K.

About

They started Aybla Grill almost 20 years ago

Revenue

They grew the business to $54K/month

Costs

It cost $20000 to start the business

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Read by 1,020 founders

4. MrBeast YouTube Channel ($54M/year)

How much they make: $54M/year
Current team size:

MrBeast Net Worth {{ current_year }}: How MrBeast Gained 90 Million Subscribers

Discover how MrBeast raised $20 million, donated over 100 cars, gave away a private island, and $1 million in one video, all while building and growing his own successful business.

About

They started MrBeast YouTube Channel over 12 years ago

Revenue

They grew the business to $4.5M/month

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Starting A Fast Food Business: Everything You Need To Know

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5. Urban Smokehouse ($1.5M/year)

Andrew Buehler, founder of Urban Smokehouse, came up with the idea for his business after noticing the growing market trend and opportunity for online delivery of perishable items during the COVID-19 lockdown. As a foodie with a background in financial services, Buehler saw the rising demand for BBQ, a food that tastes great but is often inconvenient to make, and decided to create a digitally native BBQ brand that offers pre-cooked and sauced ribs that can be easily prepared at home in under 20 minutes. He launched Urban Smokehouse as a Kickstarter project and quickly surpassed his goal, raising over $30,000 in pre-orders.

How much they make: $1.5M/year
How much did it cost to start: $15K
Current team size: 5

How We Hit Our Goal Within 24 Hours On Kickstarter And Raised $30K+ Worth of Preorders

Andrew Buehler launched Urban Smokehouse, the world’s first digitally native BBQ brand, through a Summer Kickstarter campaign, raising over $30,000 in pre-orders; since then, the company has achieved monthly sales of over $5,000 split between their website and in-person pop-ups and events, relying heavily on word of mouth and organic social media.

About

Andrew started Urban Smokehouse over 1 year ago

Revenue

Andrew grew the business to $125K/month

Costs

It cost Andrew $15000 to start the business

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Read by 2,445 founders