Founderology Forum

Bloomin’ leadership lessons with Tim Gannon, co-founder of Outback Steakhouse

Outback Steakhouse co-Founder Tim Gannon shares how with only $37, a ripped-up $1 million check and two great partners, a legendary brand was built and the most iconic appetizer in the industry was developed.

October 6, 2026

In the restaurant industry, it's easy to see brands you've known your whole life and never know how they actually started. That's why I love working with Founders. The Founder story is the catalyst, the fuel that takes an idea and makes it a reality. Twenty, 30, 40 years later, everyone takes the brand for granted in the landscape of the industry. What sometimes gets lost are the early Founder days where we learn what sets great brands apart. That's what makes this episode of "Built to Breakthrough" so powerful.

If your Founder-led brand is too big to be small and too small to be big, you are in the Stuck Zone. Tim Gannon has been there. He joined Outback at 40, $400,000 in debt and holding $37. Today he is an Inc. magazine Entrepreneur of the Year, an EY Entrepreneur of the Year, a U.S. Business Hall of Fame inductee, a five-time U.S. Open Polo champion and the creator of the Bloomin' Onion, the No. 1 casual-dining appetizer for 37 years.

On this episode of the "Founderology: Built to Breakthrough" podcast, Tim shares the origins of an iconic brand: Outback Steakhouse.

One question every Founder must answer for themselves

Before Tim talks about partners, he talks about the mirror. His mother gave him the answer at 16. It sounded like a compliment, and it was not; however, it shaped how Outback was built.

"You start with yourself. You start with understanding who you are as a person. And the most important thing to understand about yourself is your flaw, your Achilles' heel." — Tim Gannon

• The flaw Tim's mother named and why it was not a compliment
• How knowing your weakness becomes your partnering filter
• Why the flaw you will never fix could be your downfall or your blueprint

The secret behind Outback

Most people credit the Bloomin' Onion. Tim points somewhere else. He shares with entrepreneurs there is one way to cut corners on the road to scale. It is the same decision that turned $37 into an iconic brand.

"My role is to share how to cut some corners. And the way to do that is pick good partners." — Tim Gannon

• Why Chris Sullivan and Bob Basham were the perfect counterweight to Tim's biggest flaw
• The question his partners kept asking that Tim never thought to ask
• How to tell when a partner's flaw is also what makes them great

The million-dollar pivot from tactical to strategic

At 40, Tim was $400,000 in debt at 18% interest with a family. Then Al Copeland handed him a $1 million check. What he did with it, and why his partner did not find out until he read Tim's book, is the moment Tim calls the pivot of his life.

"It was the pivot in my life from being transactional to being strategic." — Tim Gannon

• Tim's four-word answer for any Founder ready to make the pivot
• Why Tim tells investors chasing a quick exit to "get out of the business"
• The one-third, one-third, one-third rule behind every Outback decision

Just like an onion, our discussion had many layers

There was so much richness in this conversation that we simply cannot share it all here. These lessons are equally powerful, and you will want to hear them in Tim's own words.

• Taking care of your people: why genuinely investing in your people is a key for growth
• Finding your Velcro: finding what sticks for you and your brand
• The significance of Founders: why Tim believes Founders are the ones who start the ball moving

Lean forward and listen now

At 78, Tim is still leaning forward. His last piece of advice for Founders is one sentence that will change how you think about equity, partners and growth. It is worth the listen on its own.

If you are in the Stuck Zone right now, this is the conversation you want to hear. Every iconic brand we might take for granted today started with Founders who knew themselves, chose the right partners, refused to stay stuck and thought beyond the moment.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts. Then order Tim's book, "Bloomin' Adventures," at outbacktim.com.

Join us at the Founderology Growth Summit, Aug. 2-4, 2027, in Chicago.

DM Kathleen on LinkedIn with your No. 1 Stuck Zone question.

Keep getting out there every day and building your brand to break through.

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