Chain Leader LIVE: Doing It Better
Chain Leader LIVE focuses on excellence in execution in an increasingly competitive market.
By David Farkas, Senior Editor -- Chain Leader, 12/1/2007
 Educational sessions at Chain Leader LIVE included a keynote speech by author and former ad exec Scott Aylward and a panel discussion among corporate chefs.
|
Despite the fires in San Diego , business was good for Tustin, Calif.-based Mimis Cafe. According to Vice President of Marketing Lowell Petrie, sales had climbed 50 percent among the family-dining chain’s four San Diego outposts by the time firefighters gained control of the blaze that destroyed 362 houses within the city limits.
Petrie speculated that the sales pop was the result of the need to gather in familiar surroundings during a crisis.
He was among 160 restaurant industry executives at the Marriott Hotel & Spa in Newport Beach , Calif. , for Chain Leader LIVE, Oct. 24-26. They gathered to network and listen to 38 leaders discuss topics ranging from expansion abroad to culinary trends, with special attention paid to execution. A brown haze and the odor of wood smoke were the only clues to the devastation nearby fires were wreaking.
Listen Up
Keynote speaker Scott Aylward, co-author with former Sonic Corp. President Pattye Moore of Confessions from the Corner Office, offered lessons on becoming a better executive and human being. A former adver tising executive, Aylward’s remarks often prompted guilty chortles, such as when he admonished those who look at their Blackberrys in meetings. “That’s like taking an in box to a meeting,” he suggested. “You have stopped listening, and that’s a powerful loss [because] you can’t contribute ideas and be creative.”
What’s more, he added, “You are telling the speaker that he’s not that important.”
Aylward’s solution: “Blackberry tables” in meeting rooms, where the devices could be collected as people walked in.
His remarks also brought applause. Aylward praised San Diego ’s Big City Bagels for a sign that reads, “We will not wait on you if you are on your cell phone.”
“Hallelujah!” he declared.
Like the Magazine
The conference’s format generally mirrors the magazine itself. For example, the Upstarts panel included the founders of concepts that had been introduced in the pages of Chain Leader.
Barry Gutin, who has opened two Cuba Libres, in Philadelphia and Atlantic City , explained how the Latin-style concept builds revenues of about $7 million per unit via an authentic Cuban menu, mojitos, and Cuban dancers and live music late at night.
Tanya Petrovna introduced Irvine, Calif.-based Native Foods 13 years ago, offering a vegan menu; the company now has five outposts in Southern California .
“As long as the flavor and texture are there,” the product can go on the menu, says Petrovna, a vegan herself. Seitan, a vegetable protein often used as a meat substitute, fits that bill so well that Petrovna’s company manufactures it.
The rebirth of Pittsburgh-based Italian Oven Cafe, a concept that began life as a full-service chain in the mid-’90s, was the subject of founder Jim Frye’s presentation. Since closing his original stores, he explained, he has altered the concept to quick casual and plans to open a second in South Florida . The upscale menu includes lobster ravioli, Chicken Toscana and pizza with prosciutto and figs. The check average is $9, Frye added.
Attendees were treated to a case study of branding efforts at another chain that has altered its concept: 120-unit Hard Rock Café. Chief Marketing Officer Sean Dee outlined the step-by-step process the company and its ad agency took to re-invigorate the aging concept.
One bit of advice from Dee : Trim logos. Hard Rock, he said, had 280 logos two years ago.
Another tip: “Innovate relentlessly and stay fresh,” Dee said.
Emergency Measures
Breakout sessions gave attendees a chance to interact with experts more closely. During one, attendees heard from food-safety experts like Hal King at Chick-fil-A and Marketing Vice President Brian Dixon of Taco John’s. Dixon talked about how the chain dealt with an E. coli outbreak last December, and he recommended practicing crisis management.
“We had a plan, but we hadn’t drilled on it,” he said. “Now we were caught up in this incredible situation. I was taking 40 calls a day.” The Cheyenne, Wyo.-based chain quickly switched lettuce suppliers and agreed to reimburse the medical bills of the people sickened.
Growth Imperatives
Less dramatic but no less crucial are the steps operators must take if they are to maintain staffing levels. That’s because health-care and pre-school industries are hiring workers who might otherwise work in restaurants, warned the People Report’s Teresa Siriani, who moderated a panel that included Buffets Inc. Vice President of Human Resources Jane Binzak and Vice President of Human Resources Tom Norton of BJ’s Restaurants.
“That’s the same labor pool for restaurant managers,” she explained, adding that the 16- to 24-year-old labor pool will have “no growth for the next 10 years.”
There’s yet another important demand on operators, this one from international franchisees. In the World Partners general session, Church’s Chicken Vice President of International Franchising Zack Kollias drew upon his experiences abroad to offer compelling advice about how to expand outside the United States with foreign partners. The fried chicken chain franchises some 400 units in 18 countries.
Kollias counseled attendees to research heavily. For instance, he advised, determine if taste panels are necessary. “In India , they are,” he declared.
The Toque of the Town session also raised taste issues. The corporate chefs on the panel discussed the consumer demand for different kinds of breads, trendy ingredients such as juices, purees and nuts, and the how the Food Network has prompted consumers to seek new flavors.
Award-Winning
The editors of Chain Leader presented the magazine’s Execution Awards on Chain Leader LIVE’s final day: IHOP Corp. CEO Julia A. Stewart won the Chain Leadership award, Chick-fil-A’s S. Truett Cathy, the Legend award, and Metromedia Restaurant Group’s Clayton M. Dover earned the Protégé award.
The 37-year-old Dover acknowledged he was startled to find himself in the company of Cathy and Stewart, adding he owes his rapid rise to bosses that gave him a chance to work freely.
Freedom was the theme of filmmaker Patti DiVita’s presentation, in which the former waitress recalled that working in restaurants gave her a chance to travel. “I could find work just about anyplace,” she said.
DiVita illustrated her talk about waitressing with clips from her movie, “Did I Say Thousand Island?” which she wrote and directed. The feature-length movie tells the story of a waitress coming to terms with her choice of careers. DiVita reminded the audience to take care of their employees because employees were responsible for making sure customers were taken care of.
Customer Counts
Orlando, Fla.-based Red Lobster has been taking care of more customers, according to President Kim Lopdrup. The aging seafood chain is performing better, largely on account of stronger marketing, exciting new menus and a classier prototype.
Lopdrup joined Il Fornaio/Corner Bakery CEO Mike Hislop and Yard House CEO Steele Platt for a lively discussion about growth strategies. Platt, who recently recapitalized the business he founded 11 years ago, said Yard House would no longer be constrained by capital. Yet, he added, finding good locations wasn’t getting easier. Lopdrup discussed Red Lobster’s new upscale decor and menu, saying it was geared to lure lapsed customers.
The odor of smoke that pervaded the air didn’t stop attendees from piling into nearby restaurants—Yard House, Blue Coral, Fleming’s Steak House and Café R&D, among them. No doubt, sales for those restaurants were up, too.More information about Chain Leader LIVE.
© 2009, Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All Rights Reserved.