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Employer Quick Look

Cracker Barrel

(Public)  
Restaurant
10,000 - 25,000 employees  |  
Approx. 65 active jobs   | 
Overview
Traveling the highways of America, you drive through the places where most folks in this country still live: small towns. One of them, just off the stretch of I-40 that runs through Tennessee, is a place called Lebanon.

Now, unless you're a hunter and collector of antiques, odds are you haven't heard of Lebanon. But no matter, folks in Lebanon like it just the way it is. Comfortable. Friendly. A great place to come home to. No wonder a fellow named Dan Evins thought it was just the place to start something that would someday turn out to be anything but small.

While working in the family gasoline business back in the late 1960s, Dan began thinking of ways to better meet the needs of folks on the road. You see, the interstate system was still young. Goods and services were sparse and often not to be trusted. What's more, with the rise of fast food, the little places that served up some of the real flavor of America seemed to be getting pushed out. Fast food might be a good business idea, Dan thought, but it sure wasn't such a hot eating idea. Truth is, Dan always saw mealtime as special -- a time to catch up with your family, your friends, or your thoughts. Meals weren't meant to be swallowed down in three bites with a squirt of ketchup.

Dan began to think about all the things that would make him feel comfortable if he was far from home. Things like big jars of candy and homemade jellies. Pot-bellied stoves. Folks that let you take your time. Simple, honest country food. And a store where you could buy someone a gift that was actually worth buying.

What Dan had in mind was the kind of place he'd been to hundreds of times as a boy. It was a place called the country store, something every small community once had. And maybe, Dan figured, just what these big new highways might take to.

As luck would have it, Dan's company owned a nice parcel of land on the outskirts of town. So with the help of a friend, Tommy Lowe, plans were drawn up, and on September 19, 1969, the first Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® opened.

Of course, building a country store isn't the same as being one. A lot of things would have to be just right, the two most important being what was served, and who was serving it. So the corn bread came from cornmeal and an old country recipe, not a mix. The maple syrup for pancakes was just that, maple syrup -- the kind from a tree. Quality mattered, along with prices that wouldn't break folks. And thanks to the people who worked there, a trip to the original Cracker Barrel Old Country Store was a lot like a friendly visit to a neighbor's home.

Well, people liked the Old Country Store and word got around. Pretty soon, folks were waiting in lines for turnip greens, biscuits and gravy, and all the other good country cookin' that Cracker Barrel had to offer.

Naturally, it didn't take long for Dan and his investors (most of whom were local friends and associates) to see a whole lot more interstate ahead of them, and by 1977 there were 13 stores, from Tennessee clear to Georgia.

Now you might not have known it, but the early stores also offered gasoline. But when the oil embargo of the mid-seventies hit, new stores were built without filling stations. And today, they're out of the gasoline business altogether. So if you're pulling in to a Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, make sure it's just your stomach that's on empty.

As time marched on, so did Cracker Barrel, and in 1981 the company went public with its stock. That same year, it was cited in Institutions Magazine as one of the nation's foremost growth chains, while Money Magazine listed the company as one of the top ten stocks in America. Suddenly flush with praise and the loyalty of guests who seemed to have an insatiable appetite for home style cooking, the company's expansion had even more drive behind it.

Between 1980 and 1990, eighty-four stores opened across the country. By the end of July 1996, there were 260 Cracker Barrels. And today, there are 498 stores in 41 states. All owned by a company that has no plans for franchising, and run by the same man, Dan Evins, who had the vision to start it all.

In fact, even though the company has had to "adjust" to the size of the business, the important things have all stayed pretty much the same. Dan has always said the mission for every Cracker Barrel Old Country Store is pleasing people (a simple "mutual respect" concept). So even now, the mashed potatoes are scratch-made every day. Scratch biscuits come served with real butter. And every item in the gift shop is a genuine value.

Things are likely to stay that way, too. Call it nostalgia if you want, but the goal isn't simply to recreate to a time gone by. It's to preserve it. Because the way we see it, the lifestyle of rural America aren't about where you live. They're about how you live.

Culture
At Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®, we do everything in our power to provide our employees with the tools, information, and environment needed to give our guests the great service they’ve come to expect from us. We are committed to recognizing the talents and job performance of all employees, and we value the contributions that come from people with different backgrounds. All of our core training programs include the company’s expectations for strict adherence to our Pleasing People mission. We also give our leaders the power to back up our commitment to inclusion and to our Equal Opportunity Statement. We regularly remind our leaders of their role in protecting our values. We also provide an Open Door Policy for all employees. We offer training and advancement programs for hourly and management employees throughout the company that clearly communicate company policies and practices, promote skill building, provide career-growth, and offer financial rewards. Ultimately, our employees are exposed to our Pleasing People mission throughout their career.
Vision
At Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®, two words best describe our philosophy for creating an inclusive and productive environment for guests, employees, vendors and shareholders: Pleasing People!

Pleasing People is so central to what we value, it’s our company mission statement. That’s it… Pleasing People… Nothing more. Nothing less. Some companies have long and complicated mission statements, but that’s just not our way. In fact, since the very first Cracker Barrel location opened back in 1969 in Lebanon, Tennessee, we’ve kept things pretty simple. At Cracker Barrel, Pleasing People is all about mutual respect.
People
Our employees are the lifeblood of our business. And it’s these employees who help us achieve our mission of Pleasing People. We want employees who share a common value of mutual respect for all persons regardless of their race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, age, or disability.
Products
For over 30 years, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® has been committed to offering our guests high-quality merchandise that calls to mind days past. Since the very first Cracker Barrel opened back in 1969, our retail stores have been filled with products reminiscent of an old country store. Everything from hand-blown glassware to cast iron cookware, collectibles to classic children’s toys, and old-fashioned tableware like you’d find on your grandmother’s table.

Many of the products we carry have just as long of a rich history as Cracker Barrel…some even longer. Some of these products have a special story behind them, and some of them were invented simply by accident.