Steak 'n Shake - History

History

Gus Belt founded Steak 'n Shake in Normal, Illinois, in February 1934, when he converted the combination gas station and chicken restaurant that he owned (Shell's Chicken) into a hamburger stand. The original building at the intersection of Main and West Virginia avenue was damaged by a fire in the early 1960s, but it was repaired and its dining room expanded. In the late 1990s, Steak 'n Shake sold this building to the Monical's Pizza company. Steak 'n Shake's slogan "In Sight It Must Be Right" originally referred to Belt's practice of grinding the beef that he used in his steak burgers in the public area of his restaurant and in the sight of the customers. This practice was intended to reassure customers of the wholesomeness of the product. (At that time, ground beef was still viewed with some skepticism by the general public, based on the likelihood of its having deliberate impurities introduced into it). This practice of grinding the beef in public also helped assure his customers of the veracity of Belt's "steak burger" claim because they could see for themselves that he was grinding steaks into the hamburger meat. Today, the slogan is generally thought to refer to Steak 'n Shake's open grill line.

Following the success of the original restaurant, Belt purchased a chain of "Goal Post" restaurants throughout Central Illinois, converting them into Steak 'n Shake restaurants. He also added curb service at this point.

Steak 'n Shake continued to expand throughout Illinois following the death of its creator in 1954, with ownership passing through many hands, including: Gus's wife Edith Belt (who ran the chain until 1969), Longchamps, Inc. (an east coast steakhouse company that owned the chain from 1969 to 1971) and the Franklin Corporation, led by Robert Cronin, author of Selling Steakburgers: The Growth of a Corporate Culture. In 1981, Steak 'n Shake was sold by Franklin to E. W. Kelley and Associates, whose chairman, E. W. "Ed" Kelley was considered largely responsible for the growth of the restaurant until his death on July 4, 2003. The brand had been declining during the late 1970s, and in 1984 was in the red. Around that time the headquarters had been transferred from Bloomington, Illinois, to Indianapolis, Indiana. Kelley hired the former head of Circle K to turn the business around. Steak 'n Shake rapidly improved and expanded throughout the 1990s and into 2000. In early November 2004, The Steak 'n Shake Company entered into an agreement to buy out its largest franchisee, Kelley Restaurants, Inc. (which is owned by the late Mr. Kelley's family). KRI's 16 sites will be purchased for about $1 million each; they are mainly in Georgia and North Carolina.

In 2008, there was a shake-up in the company's Board of Directors. Value investors Sardar Biglari and Phillip Cooley were elected to the Board with well over 70% of the votes cast. As a result, Biglari was selected Chairman of the company.