Patrick & Kathy Terry (P. Terry's): "Why We Said No to $100M"

We're still surprised people did this but... 50+ founders worth $10M to $4B reveal their personal finances. Here it is: https://joinhampton.com/mw-wrWhy do we do this? Because if you're an aspirational person or someone who runs a business and is making money, it's incredibly challenging to figure out what to do. Information is impossible to find — and that's what we put together: the net worth reveal and why we do this podcast, Moneywise.They turned down a $100M offer for their burger stand — now they're giving the company to their 1,800 employees.Patrick and Kathy Terry opened a 500-square-foot burger stand in South Austin in 2005 — three months into their marriage — selling $1.60 hamburgers. Kathy barely took a salary for over a decade. In 2016, with ten locations, a buyer offered them between $70 and $100 million, and they said no, pulling out just under $10M — the only money they've ever taken in 21 years. Today P. Terry's runs 37 locations, employs 1,800 people, does between $150 and $200 million a year growing 20%+ — and instead of selling, they're transferring the whole company to their employees through an Employee Ownership Trust, something fewer than 100 American companies have ever done.This episode gets into the exact numbers behind the offer they walked away from, why $10M felt like enough, the $900K in interest-free loans they've made to hourly employees (with only $5K in defaults), the "Maggie rule" that governs every company decision, and how an EOT actually works versus an ESOP — including why one protects your culture forever and the other can be forced to sell it. It ends with the question underneath it all: what a business is for when the check stops mattering.Also, this podcast is made by Hampton, which is a community for founders doing on average $20 million a year in revenue. We saw a lot of these money conversations happening privately behind closed doors and we thought, "What the heck, let's make it public." If you are a founder, apply here: http://joinhampton.com/mwTimestamps:00:00 — Cold open: "It was between 70 and $100 million and you turned it down."02:53 — Kathy's West Texas upbringing, quitting the law firm, and giving herself a 500% raise06:33 — Patrick's path: Kool-Aid stand at 5, ad agency by day, running a pizza place nights and weekends09:30 — Springing the burger stand idea on Kathy three months into their marriage: "I didn't think he'd ever do it"11:05 — Year one: $600K in revenue from 500 square feet — and still in the red after depreciation16:09 — The 2016 "dog and pony show": realizing for the first time what the business was worth17:35 — "It was between 70 and $100 million" — a 10–12x offer, and why they turned it down20:23 — Kathy's real fear: "Who's going to take care of our employees? They're not going to bake birthday cakes anymore."23:01 — Patrick was stunned to learn they had 300 employees — he thought it was 80 or 9024:27 — Why the birthday cakes matter: "For a lot of our employees, that is how they celebrate their birthday"25:59 — Barely taking a salary for 12 years, then pulling out just under $10M — the only money ever taken27:17 — The June EOT transition: gifting and selling the first ~11% to the trust via a seller's note33:36 — The origin of interest-free loans: Vinny's broken truck and $15034:05 — $900K loaned to hourly employees over 20 years — only $5,000 ever defaulted37:14 — The Maggie rule: every decision tested against the woman who's worked the grill for 21 years42:05 — Kathy explains EOT vs. ESOP — and why one protects the culture forever49:40 — Profit sharing starts next year: 5% of EBITDA now, 20% in five years, based purely on tenure54:49 — "The island sucks. This is okay." What Patrick learned about what he actually wanted59:20 — Kathy's open offer to walk any founder through the EOT modelSponsors: Daily Body Coach - achieve your dream body with https://moneywise.dailybodycoach.comSubscribe to Moneywise: https://www.youtube.com/@themoneywisepodcastFollow Daniel on X: https://x.com/danielcberkListen on Spotify / Apple Podcasts: [search "Moneywise Hampton"]