Bill Kraus on a Mission to Serve

Bill Kraus is on a mission. And I use that word intentionally. He is the co-founder and owner of Mission Barbeque, which opened its doors for business on September 11th, 2011. And of course, that date is not a coincidence. Bill and his co-founder Steve “Newt” Newton, who came from Outback Steakhouse, were very intentional from the beginning to make sure that they built a business that was purpose-based. They cared deeply about serving their employees, their customers, their community, and they’re unapologetically patriotic. They believe in serving our first responders and our military, and that’s going to come across tried and true in today’s conversation. Before starting Mission Barbeque, Bill had spent a lot of his career working in the sports industry. He worked for the NFL, he worked for the brand Champion, and he also was one of the first employees for Under Armour. He helped Under Armour grow and expand at an amazingly rapid pace. He helped that company grow its revenues from $20 million to an excess of $800 million. He oversaw the following functional areas: he helped them with brand marketing, sports marketing, product merchandising, business development, licensing, and team sales. And yet, it wasn’t until he got with Mission Barbeque that he really became this purpose driven leader and wanted to create something bigger than himself. He really cares deeply about service and that’s what today’s conversation is about. What I love about Bill, regardless of what you think of him or Mission Barbeque, he is clear on who they serve. He constantly is trying to challenge us to think intentionally about how we can serve people, and he is obsessed with serving the constituents that exist at Mission Barbeque. They show and share their love for soldiers, firefighters, police officers, first responders, and they don’t hold back in calling those people heroes. So, you know as soon as you enter Mission Barbeque that they are purpose driven, that they are clear on what they value, and also, their barbeque is really really good. If you’re in the Mid-Atlantic region like me, you’ve probably been to one of their restaurants. And if you’re outside of this area, you’re probably going to start to see their restaurants pop up. They’ve already gone as far west as Colorado and they have big plans to continue to grow and make an impact. So, today’s conversation is certainly about Mission, it’s certainly about impact, and I think at its core it is about service.

Bill had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include:

“I just don’t think we’d feel right about doing business on [Memorial Day]” (7:05).

“[Calling our employees teammates] creates more of a bond and a unity” (8:15).

“I was going to find my own way to serve and give back and make a difference in a more meaningful way” (10:10).

“The gifts we have we are given to share” (11:40).

“There’s that fine line between confidence and cockiness that you have to have a certain level of commitment, especially when you take that risk to start your own business” (12:10).

“This is a lot more than just a pulled pork sandwich as much as the experience we’re trying to create for our consumer” (19:10).

“The consumer feels like they are appreciated at Mission Barbeque” (20:20).

“If for some reason we do make too much [food], there’s probably a firehouse or a police station that would gladly take some of that food at the end of the day” (26:55).

“You have to embrace the data, but that can’t be your full factor in making decisions” (28:20).

“Every day is Veteran’s Day at Mission Barbeque” (33:10).

“Your life doesn’t need to fit into your job” (37:25).

“We welcome and encourage leaning into [gratitude over entitlement]” (44:50).

“If you want to go fast, you go alone. If you want to go far, you go together” (46:55).

“At the end of the day, if [Newt and I] aren’t in agreement, we’re probably not going to do it” (47:15).

“[A hero is] somebody that is much more than just themselves and realizes the role that they played on a team” (53:00).

“As hard as the walk was, thank god that it led to this” (55:50).

“The numbers are what the numbers are, but how are people feeling?” (1:00:00).

“If you do it right, no matter what business, and you align yourself and find the right people, and there is a purpose to it, success can be found” (1:03:25).

Thank you so much to Bill for coming on the podcast!

I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers.

Thanks for listening.