Why Ron Ladner? I brought Ron on because I’d seen a line in his book about the “symbolic and literal role of a cheeseburger in shaping identity, comfort, and joy,” and I needed to know if that was just clever copy—or a real operating system. Spoiler: it’s the latter. From Katrina to Culture Ron told me Shaggy’s began almost by accident after Hurricane Katrina leveled his hometown of Pascagoula/Bay St. Louis area on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. He’d just sold a software services company, and instead of relocating, he and his wife Laura stayed to rebuild. The “business plan” was simple: create a place that made people feel better—comfort, hope, community. Profit wasn’t the point. But that focus on people and place turned out to be wildly successful. The Cheeseburger Metaphor Shaggy’s is a waterfront seafood restaurant… whose #1 seller is the cheeseburger. Ron named his 60’ sportfisher “Cheeseburger,” and in his book, the burger becomes a metaphor for what they serve emotionally: warmth, familiarity, joy. It’s hard to be cynical when you’re smiling over a great burger with a view. 60% Growth, Zero New Units Here’s the strategy lesson that smacked me in the face: since 2019, Shaggy’s grew revenue 60% without opening new locations. Instead, they bought adjacent parcels, expanded bars and kitchens, and scaled capacity where demand already existed. Same cost of goods, lower marginal labor, fewer managers per incremental dollar, and a tighter culture. That’s capital efficiency most chains would kill for. People First (For Real) Average restaurant tenure is about 75 days; Shaggy’s sits at three years. That changes everything—mistakes drop, training shrinks, loyalty compounds, and the guest experience stabilizes. Ron’s philosophy: if I want guests to leave happier than they arrived, my team has to feel that way first. That means helping employees solve “home problems” (financial or otherwise), not just scheduling them. They offer health insurance with a 50/50 split and a 401(k) match up to ~4%; in two years, their plan holds ~$600k, half funded by ownership. Expensive? Yes. But performance and retention pay it back daily. Tech Is Change Management Ron’s software roots show up in how they operate. He doesn’t worship proprietary platforms—he worships adoption. Early on, servers resisted handheld POS by writing orders on pads and keying them in around the corner. Leadership coached, stuck with it, and now the team would riot if handhelds disappeared. The lesson: tech is the easy part; getting humans to embrace it is the real work. Also: they see live sales vs. LY daily, not “when accounting closes.” That lets them course-correct in real time. Faith, Service, and Realistic Expectations Ron’s candid about faith and service, and I loved his framing of gratitude. Even Jesus healed ten lepers and only one said thanks. If you’re serving people for the dopamine of appreciation, you’ll burn out. Serve because it’s right—and be thrilled when the 10% shows up. My Takeaways Grow where you’re already strong before you plant new flags. Benefits aren’t “nice to have”—they’re competitive infrastructure. Culture is a system, not a slogan. Tech is adoption, not features. Joy scales. Sometimes it looks like a perfect cheeseburger. Learn more about Ron’s story and book at ronladner.com—and yes, I fully intend to eat a Shaggy’s cheeseburger on a Gulf sunset soon.
