Editorial: To Each His Own

Take the ideas driving mass customization beyond the menu.

By Mary Boltz Chapman, Editor-in-Chief -- Chain Leader, 3/1/2005

A history lesson: Henry Ford transformed manufacturing when he developed the first moving assembly line in 1913 to build Model Ts. Ray Kroc changed the face of the restaurant industry when he opened his first McDonald’s in 1955 selling mass-produced hamburgers and sold franchises by touting automation and standardization.

But consumers are a fickle lot, and a sense of individualism grew. We don’t want the same thing everyone else has. Well, not exactly, anyway. We are unique, our needs are unique, we want unique products. Standardization was out. Business had to change.

Same Difference
While futurists had been talking about it since the ’70s, the movement was perhaps best defined by Mass Customization: The New Frontier in Business Competition by B. Joseph Pine and Stan Davis. Published in 1992, the business book discussed how new ways of managing and new technology makes tailor-made products in a mass-production system possible.

A company could produce a critical mass of basic elements and then assemble the final product based on customers’ specifications.

For example, Capital One has become the third largest issuer of credit cards in just 15 years due to its ability to tailor products to individuals and small market niches. Dell took on Apple and IBM by letting customers build their own PCs. Tivo lets users watch whatever they want, whenever, with or without commercials.

You can “Have it your way” at Burger King; watch your sandwich being made, giving instructions along the way, at Subway; order a Caesar salad instead of fries with your combo meal at Wendy’s; or indulge in a grande half-caf soy latte at Starbucks. Pizza fans could always choose their own toppings, but Pizza Hut allows them to order 4forALL Pizzas, four little pizzas each with its own toppings.

Think Outside the Bun
Restaurant chains have changed the way they develop and market the menu. But not many of them have taken mass customization any further.

Service should be tailored as well. Different dining occasions call for different service methods. My husband and I eat out a lot, so when we go to a casual-dining restaurant, we’re not surprised when a friendly server sits down at the table to take our order. But when it happened on Valentine’s Day a few years back, we were stunned. What would have been fitting and even delightful any other day was not appropriate on date night.

You can also customize your employees’ experience. I heard about a fast-food chain that decided to close its urban units early on New Year’s Eve, losing business on what would have been a busy Friday night. The executives weren’t giving their staff a chance to ring in the New Year, but rather allowing them to get home safely before the revelers started shooting their guns.

Look at your one-size-fits-all benefits packages. A teen doesn’t need or want the same perks as a parent. Offer flexibility so one can choose car-insurance discounts while the other can get dental. Set it up like a Chinese menu: choose one from column A, one from column B. Training, development and hours can be flexible, as long as they are fair. Allow employees to choose which holidays to take off.

Chains can take mass customization to a new level by being as agile and quick in dealing with customers’ and employees’ needs as they are with menu development.