Every restaurateur has a right to succeed — and to succeed beyond their dreams. I absolutely believe that…and it’s been my life’s work to make that happen. I also believe that, as long as you are learning, paying attention, changing with the times, and taking action you are going to get better and create the … Continued
Onboarding. What happens after you hire a new employee is arguably more important than recruiting and training. Your people’s attitudes and behaviors are the number one reason they bond with your brand, their coworkers, and your guests. When new employees at the multi-unit independent restaurant company you own understand what makes your restaurants different, they’re … Continued
How do you become an employer of choice? Every multi-unit independent restaurant company owner wants to be an “employer of choice.” But we all know the statistics: On paper there aren’t enough workers for the restaurant jobs we have now — much less those we will create tomorrow. Your competitors can match you in pay … Continued
Twenty units. As an independent multi-unit restaurant company owner, where do you go from there? This is your “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” moment. Going past 20 units means a choice about how you want to live your life — with an added healthy reality check around what you are capable of. All … Continued
If your independent restaurant company unit count has reached double digits, congratulations! You’ve reached a significant milestone. Where do you go from here? Maybe you’ve never owned 10 restaurants before. A whole new set of challenges and opportunities awaits. It’s imperative that you handle them — not only to continue to grow healthy new units … Continued
All my research points to a proven formula for handling issues that impact your multi-unit independent restaurant company’s ability to grow. In our business, it is a cliché that the hardest thing to do is grow from one to two units. But there are other leaps that are equally challenging. Blowing past three to four … Continued
If you own a successful independent multi-unit restaurant company, your work life — and your whole life — ought to be a joy. That’s how my best clients feel. This is the single most important thing I work on with my clients. But not all their peers feel that way. Some are caught up in … Continued
Recently a successful restaurateur looked at me over the lunch table and told me that running his increasingly growing stable of much-admired restaurants was beginning to become boring. “An opening is an opening — and, in operations, you may have problems, but they tend to be the same problems.” That made me think. Quality, service, happy guests, … Continued
Restaurant Development+Design November/December, 2015 By: Matthew Mabel Choosing the right site — one that is optimal for your concept, the right location for your customer base and at the right time for the place — is paramount to your success. Site selection is about more than just the viability of the unit you intend to … Continued
I recently told a general manager at one of our client companies to get ready, “because your weekly operations meeting are going to become more data driven than ever before.” How much attention is your organization paying to data and technology these days? If yours is like most, you’ve recognized the enormous amount of data being generated. … Continued