In the business of faith

pursuit | 21Photos by Sarah Jane O’Keefe. Design by Brianna Nelson. Model: Kate McPhillips.

By Shayna Moreno

Can a business keep its morals and ethics yet still be successful?

Ask multi-billion dollar Chick-fil-A or one of the most well-known clothing stores in the U.S.

– Forever 21. In a world where money is king and profits seem to blind moral character, a few

businesses have emerged to become industry leaders.

Most of us have had the pleasure of biting into a juicy chicken sandwich paired with a side

of fresh waffle fries and a genuine “My pleasure.” That is a normal day at any of the 1,200

Chick-fil-A restaurants. With system-wide sales in 2010 reaching $3.5 billion, an 11.37 percent

increase over the chain’s 2009 performance and a same-store sales increase of 5.62 percent,

they must be doing something right.

And all this is done with a Monday to Saturday work week. Founder Truett Cathy made the

decision to close on Sundays in 1946 when he opened his first restaurant in Hapeville, Geor-

gia. He often shares that his decision was as much practical as spiritual.

Some businesses choose not to share their religious beliefs as openly as Chick-fil-A. CNN

once discussed Forever 21 citing John 3:16 at the bottom of its stores’ shopping bags. A

spokeswoman for the brand told the New York Times that the message is a “demonstration of

the owner’s faith.” Western U.S. burger chain In-N-Out has printed Bible passages on cups and

wrappers since the late ’80s.

Business owner and professor of marketing at California Baptist University, Keanon Alderson

said, “I let my co-workers and customers know of my spiritual beliefs, I tell them things such as

I’ll pray for you and God bless. I use my life as a witness of Christ’s love.”

A few not-so-well-known faith-based businesses include Mary Kay, Interstate Batteries and

ServiceMaster. IndentityCulture.org cited Mary Kay Ash as a passionate businesswoman who

let God guide her life. Her legendary quote – “My priorities have always been God first, family

second, career third” – became an integral part of her business, Mary Kay cosmetics.

Norm Miller is the chairman of Interstate Batteries, a company producing thousands of bat-

teries. Miller is known for his strong Christian business principles and openly states that his

mission is to glorify God. The president of the Home Shopping Network, Lowell Paxson is

quoted as saying, “My entrepreneurial traits are nothing but the expression of a God-driven

urge to challenge the general tendency of things.”

Residential service companies such as Terminix and American Home Shield are owned by

ServiceMaster. The company was founded in 1929 by Marion E. Wade, who “had a strong per-

sonal faith and a desire to honor God in all he did,”according to CNN.com. “Translating this into

the marketplace, he viewed each individual employee and customer as being made in God’s

image – worthy of dignity and respect.”

As proven by these well known men and women, personal morals and ethics do not have to

be pushed aside in order to be successful. Monetary gain can be achieved even more so than

a mainstream counterpart.

“My entrepreneurial triats are nothing but the expression of a God-driven urge to challence the general tendency of things.”

in the business of faithThe balancing act of morals and business