Episode 5 | Joe Rogers Jr.

The Atlanta Story

The Atlanta Story podcast features meaningful stories of Atlanta’s builders, creators, and entrepreneurs. In this episode Jon Birdsong sits down with Joe Rogers Jr, Chairman of Waffle House.

In 1979, Joe brokered a deal earning him and the Rogers family controlling interest of the steadily growing Waffle House franchise. Under his leadership, Waffle House grew to over 1900 restaurants while employing over 35,000 people. In the interview, Joe discusses how Waffle House navigated the Covid crisis, the values that make Waffle House so unique, why most of their restaurants are located in the Southeast, and much more!

The Atlanta Story is put together by the folks at Atlanta Ventures -- and we can’t wait to share some of the personalities behind the brand. Atlanta Ventures invests in entrepreneurs through community, content, and capital -- most notably through our Studio with companies like Greenzie and Intown Golf Club. We believe the best entrepreneurs learn from other great artists in different fields.

Keywords:

Atlanta, Atlantan, ATL, Business Leader, Thought leadership, Atlanta Ventures, Entrepreneurship, startups, stories, leaders, podcast, podcasting,Waffle House, WaHo, South, Georgia, Southeast, Waffle House Index, Disaster Relief,

#Atlanta #Atlantan #ATL #BusinessLeader #Thoughtleadership #AtlantaVentures #Entrepreneurship #startups #stories #leaders #podcast #podcasting #WaffleHouse #WaHo #South #Georgia #Southeast #WaffleHouseIndex #DisasterRelief

In this episode, we discuss…

1. When was the moment Joe knew this pandemic was different than anything they had ever experienced?
2. Joe describes what the last 15 months at the Waffle House have been like as we start to come out of this pandemic?
3. Remembering back to being eight years old when Joe Sr. co-founded the business, Joe describes some of the earliest memories of the beginnings of the Waffle House empire?
4. Joe answers, did the Rogers family know that the Waffle House would eventually grow into something bigger than a location or two?
5. Waffle House is the place for every type of person: how did y’all become something for everyone?
6. How did Waffle House set the culture early that everyone is welcome?
7. What are the hardest things about executing on the Waffle House playbook?
8. Did Joe always know he wanted to join the family business?
9. For such an amazing product and brand, Joe helps to understand why Waffle Houses are provincial to the Southeast?
10. How do Joe like his hash browns?
11. What drives the Waffle House organization today?
12. As we look back at the last 30 and 40 years of the Waffle House, what are some of Joe's proudest moments building the organization?
13. What would Joe like to see in The Waffle House organization over the next 20-30 years?
14. Why Atlanta and what has Atlanta done for you?

Resources discussed in this episode:

Waffle House Disaster Recovery Playbook

The Waffle House Index

How you can get involved:

Visit atlantaventures.com/studio if you’re interested in learning more about Atlanta Ventures and the Studio.

Where you can find us:

Website: www.atlstory.com

Twitter: @theatlantastory

Instagram: @theatlantastory

YouTube: Here

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