Nearly a decade later, that experiment has grown into a cookie empire generating more than $1 billion in annual revenue, with nearly 1,100 locations and more than 29,000 employees. But according to McGowan, who serves as Crumbl\u2019s CEO, building a company of that scale isn\u2019t always so sweet.<\/p>\n
In the early days, the two cousins spent countless early mornings mixing cookie dough, late nights scrubbing kitchens, and weekends wondering whether the business would survive another week. Those years of nonstop hustle ultimately shaped how McGowan now thinks about leadership\u2014and why he believes knowing when to step away is just as important as knowing how to build.<\/p>\n
\u201c[At Crumbl], we don\u2019t open on Sundays. Not just for religious purposes, but for time to reset,\u201d McGowan, who is Mormon, told Fortune. <\/em>\u201cEveryone thinks that life is just go, go, go\u2026[but] for me, success isn\u2019t only about building the biggest company\u2014it\u2019s also about creating meaningful moments with those who matter most.\u201d<\/p>\n For McGowan, that means being fully present\u2014whether he\u2019s at home or at work. As a father of seven, he puts his email away during family moments, whether he\u2019s cheering from the sidelines at a soccer game or gathering around the table for a game of Catan. <\/p>\n The same applies when he has his CEO hat on. When he\u2019s visiting a franchise location or meeting with employees, McGowan said he gives those conversations his full attention rather than allowing distractions to pull him away.<\/p>\n Courtesy of Crumbl<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cWork-life balance is extremely important,\u201d McGowan said. \u201cBeing with your families and being present is really important. It is really hard to perfectly balance. I almost don\u2019t even like that word.\u201d<\/p>\n Crumbl isn\u2019t the only major company to close on Sundays. Chick-fil-A and Hobby Lobby have long done the same, citing their founders\u2019 Christian beliefs and the importance of giving employees time to worship, rest, and be with family. But McGowan\u2019s philosophy also comes as the broader conversation around work is shifting. As more employees push for greater flexibility, and even four-day workweeks, the idea that success requires constant hustle is increasingly being challenged.<\/p>\n McGowan grew up in Alberta, Canada, to a father who worked as a social worker and a mother employed at a bank. After the eighth grade, though, McGowan dropped out of school and entered the workforce. <\/p>\n \u201cI wanted to actually own a restaurant one day,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019d worked at a steakhouse when I was young, and I was managing the kitchen portion of the steakhouse when I was just 16.\u201d<\/p>\n After moving to Utah in 2003, McGowan spent six months sleeping on friends\u2019 floors while teaching himself web development. He went on to cofound several technology startups, including a social network for students at Brigham Young University and a platform for discovering local events. From 2015 to 2017, he served as Ancestry\u2019s director of mobile product before teaming up with Hemsley to launch Crumbl.<\/p>\n Today, the chain is known for its oversized cookies and eyebrow-raising weekly flavor lineup, ranging in recent weeks from \u201cFlamin\u2019 Lime Crunch\u201d and \u201cWild Cherry Blue Razz Slushy\u201d to \u201cRoot Beer Float\u201d and \u201cHawaiian Coconut.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking back, McGowan said too many aspiring founders become consumed with the idea of building a business instead of solving a problem for customers.<\/p>\n \u201cI love building things,\u201d he said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s the world\u2019s best cookie or a piece of technology that serves somebody else. The joy of building something that makes somebody else smile\u2014that\u2019s what drives me.\u201d<\/p>\n In May of this year, McGowan announced that he and Hemsley are in the process of transitioning away from Crumbl as they find new leadership to take the company \u201cto the next level.\u201d It was reported early last year that Crumbl was exploring a sale that would have valued the company at nearly $2 billion.<\/p>\n Running a dessert company has become more complicated in recent years, from the rise of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs to AI reshaping how businesses market, hire, and serve customers.<\/p>\n For McGowan, those shifts are exactly why curiosity matters more than ever.<\/p>\n \u201cThe future has always been unpredictable,\u201d McGowan said. \u201cI will always tell my kids, never be afraid to learn new things, and never be afraid to just constantly be learning. It doesn\u2019t matter what age you are, and who you are. Never be afraid to continue to learn and to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n That mindset is especially important for Gen Z entering a labor market being transformed by AI. While technology will continue to reshape the workplace, he said the fundamentals of creating value for other people won\u2019t change.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got to remember the importance of technology and helping and serving people,\u201d he said. \u201cI think sometimes that can get lost in translation, and that\u2019s something that\u2019s really important\u2014never underestimate the power of human touch.\u201d<\/p>\n Those principles\u2014embracing lifelong learning while staying focused on serving others\u2014will outlast any technological disruption, McGowan added.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re not afraid to learn, and you\u2019re not afraid to understand the importance of building something for somebody else and creating value in the world, you\u2019re going to be just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Family](\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/img-assets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/McGowan-Family-3-1.jpg?format=webp&w=1440&q=100\"\/)
<\/div>\nFrom eighth-grade dropout to to building a billion-dollar cookie empire<\/h2>\n
Crumbl CEO\u2019s advice for Gen Z: Never stop learning\u2014nor lose the human touch<\/h2>\n