• How do you get moms and pops prepared to deal with franchisees?
  • Describes it likes having kids, no one is ever really ready
  • There are things you can do or have in place that make the process easier and make you more successful
  • You have to have a mindset that’s prepared to convert to a franchisor mindset
  • You aren’t in the restaurant business anymore at this point
  • Be willing to learn and do the extras to make it happen
  • When you get into franchising, you have to get back into the startup mindset
  • It’s rewarding if you’re willing to out in the time and effort to get to that point
• How do you prepare clients to “parent” the franchisees?
  • You have three jobs when you franchise your business
    • Sell
    • Train
    • Support
• Franchise companies that don’t do well fail at one or more of the above 3 (sell, train, support)
• Figure out which area/s you’re the strangest at and place a team around you that can fill in the gaps
• If you can have consistent support with the franchisees, that really makes a difference
• Clients will sometimes bring in mystery shoppers, not to say “I got ya” but to say “Where are you falling short?”
• Biggest challenges for franchisees during and as we come out of the pandemic
  • Franchisees that were doing well, were hit financially however they figured out a way to implement ideas from corporate, sorted out takeout program
  • Ones that didn’t figure it out decided to temporarily or permanently close
  • Tom spoke with a client and they said the one thing that saved them during the pandemic was their email list. They were able to do outreach to their customers because of that. 
• What is the perspective on full service? Will it continue to be viable?
  • Doesn’t foresee full service not existing. There will always be a place fo full service
  • The Experience Economy book

• How do you want your customer to feel when they leave? Whatever that feeling is, work backwards from there. How do you get to that feeling that you want them to have?Begin with the end in mind
• What elements do potential fransors need to have in place in order to succeed in today’s reality and tomorrow’s reality?
  • Want to make sure you have a profitable business
  • Make sure there’s at least a national customer base for your product or service and that it’s not niche
  • Can you train someone to do what you do in a reasonable time period? Anywhere from a week to 8 weeks?
• Profitability
  • Likes to see a 20% return on cash inves

• Started 10 years ago with 1 seafood restaurant.
• They’ve grown to 6 different restaurants.
• Di was a professional poker player until he decided to get into the restaurant world
• Tuyet Nhi was part of the original founding team for HEHG

“The health focus has always been a part of our identity” – Tuyet Nhi

• Inspired by Danny Meyer in the beginning. Read the book “Setting the Table”.
• One of the themes in the book is “No matter what happens, you always write the ending”. For example, if a guest has a bad experience, you write the ending. You get the chance to make it right. 
• Tony Hsieh – founder of Link Exchange. His book is “Delivering Happiness”. Delivering happiness to all of his customers and all of his employees. They read his book and it became a part of their culture.
• Radical Candor is a book that all management team is required to read. 
• Their culture is inspired by Google culture
• Expansion plans are in the future. A big project is coming at the end of the year
• Menu Item final meals
  • Tuyet Nhi – Roll Play pho
  • Di – Chasin’ Tails w/ Au Dang Sauce and fried basket of calamari Teas n You bubble tea
• Hehfood.com, @chasintailsss, @rollplaygrill, @teasnyoutea, @happyenedingseatery, @leidpoke

Quotes

Notes

Quotes

Notes

Danny serves as the editorial director at Food News Media who’s properties include QSR Magazine and FSR Magazine. A byproduct of his post is an acute understanding of what’s happening in the restaurant industry and what’s coming down the pike. In this episode, we unpack some of the trends and challenges the industry is facing, along with some of Danny’s perspectives on what’s coming next.

• Serves as Director of Digital Content of Food News Media (QSR Magazine, FSR Magazine, both are free publications)
• Covers, trends, news and talking to operators for digital properties

• “What does not have a shelf life and what probably has changed forever is the definition of convenience” -Danny (7:20)

• “That’s the lasting change is the convenience element to come out of COVID” -Danny (7:45)

• “We were all headed this way in quick service in terms of trying to remove friction from the ordering experience… especially mobile and anything involving digital ordering” -Danny (9:00)

• “That’s where we are now. It ushered in that era, and I don’t think we’re going back now” -Danny (9:36)

• “I’m personally a fan of the ghost kitchen model over the virtual brand model for the long term.” -Danny (31:35)

• “What I think they will continue to do is launch ghost kitchens where they can seed a market and decide if they actually want to go in there because it’s a great way to test demand with basically no overhead” -Danny (33:29)

• “A lot of the users on 3rd party apps are product loyal rather than brand loyal” -Danny (34:39)

• We’ve seen a lot of movement in comfort food in the last year and the clock is ticking on that to some degree.

• As we emerge out of the quarantine fog, we’re gonna get a little more health focused.

• During the height of the pandemic, Starbucks and Dunkin really saw this drive toward people getting coffee as a treat or indulgent occasion mid-morning or afternoon.

• Takeout is gonna go down as dine in goes up and what we’re gonna have to pay attention to is what happens to the daypart occasions because they’ve been completely fractured and re-written during COVID.

• Are people gonna start going to bars again and getting White Castle on the way home?

Azzi is an absolute hospitality nerd who has traveled and worked around the globe for notable hotel brands. Her love of people and the industry shines in this episode where we discuss how hotel brands can attract travelers, get better at serving them, and find a path forward post-pandemic.

• Shadowed the manager at the Beverly Region hotel where Pretty Woman was filmed
• Worked with Miami Heat in the past and got to meet people from all over the world
• Recruited by Marriott and entered into the sector in Atlanta
• Came back to Los Angeles and got introduced to an owner opening a new hotel. Developed the brand and marketing for this hotel. IT was the first independent boutique property before it was a thing in LA.
• Started a no-networking event in downtown to get people together. Getting people to come into town to experience the city.
• Went to school in Switzerland and got exposed to people from all over the world.
• Starting helping GMs with their ROI and renovations and F&B revamps at Swiss Hotels with Lillian Rotan
• Moved to Dubai for a time then came back to LA to work with Allbright, a woman’s group to help them with different stages of career.
• Currently consulting with hotels and hospitality companies in Los Angeles to help disrupt the market

Notable Quotes

“You need to be looking at everything coming in and use them as inspiration for innovation.” – Azzi Kashani 

• “There will be the ones who were not ruined by the pandemic who are poised to capitalize.” – Joseph Szala
• “You don’t get locals to come in by making the food and beverage brand by making it look like the meeting room” – Joseph Szala

Notes

• You can never go back and say things are going to go back to normal. You have to look to the future
• Expectations of service have changed. You have to up your game. 
• A no-brainer is that technology and innovation has changed. The expectations of guests before they arrive.
• Ease of the use of the website. They’re used to things being simple. Click of a button brings the world. This needs to be more innovative and hotels are known to be dinosaurs in this regard.
• There are people breaking the industry with points and hotels need to get creative with rethinking rewards and what points can do in a way that’s unique to the brand.
• Show what a room looks like! Sometimes you have to call the hotel and ask if the rooms have been renovated recently.
• Joseph’s wife needs to start a blog finding great places to stay.
• Are influencers losing their uniqueness and effectiveness? Are micro-influencers the future? Social media isn’t really and micro influencers are being smart about their intentions and posts being more real. Their experiences are real and valid. 
• What’s the incentive for booking direct? It needs to be clear so people do it. We need clearer benefits.
• Biggest difference between International hospitality and American hospitality? Reimagination of boutique hotels. Around the world, she was introduced to the idea of boutique hotels before they influenced stateside thinking. We have a penchant for standardization in the US but it misses the local flair. 
• Adaptability of different positions in boutique hotels are a big difference. The person who checks you in is your concierge, too. This builds a connection throughout the stay. You talk to the same person for e

Azzi is an absolute hospitality nerd who has traveled and worked around the globe for notable hotel brands. Her love of people and the industry shines in this episode where we discuss how hotel brands can attract travelers, get better at serving them, and find a path forward post-pandemic.

• Shadowed the manager at the Beverly Region hotel where Pretty Woman was filmed
• Worked with Miami Heat in the past and got to meet people from all over the world
• Recruited by Marriott and entered into the sector in Atlanta
• Came back to Los Angeles and got introduced to an owner opening a new hotel. Developed the brand and marketing for this hotel. IT was the first independent boutique property before it was a thing in LA.
• Started a no-networking event in downtown to get people together. Getting people to come into town to experience the city.
• Went to school in Switzerland and got exposed to people from all over the world.
• Starting helping GMs with their ROI and renovations and F&B revamps at Swiss Hotels with Lillian Rotan
• Moved to Dubai for a time then came back to LA to work with Allbright, a woman’s group to help them with different stages of career.
• Currently consulting with hotels and hospitality companies in Los Angeles to help disrupt the market

Notable Quotes

“You need to be looking at everything coming in and use them as inspiration for innovation.” – Azzi Kashani 

• “There will be the ones who were not ruined by the pandemic who are poised to capitalize.” – Joseph Szala
• “You don’t get locals to come in by making the food and beverage brand by making it look like the meeting room” – Joseph Szala

Notes

• You can never go back and say things are going to go back to normal. You have to look to the future
• Expectations of service have changed. You have to up your game. 
• A no-brainer is that technology and innovation has changed. The expectations of guests before they arrive.
• Ease of the use of the website. They’re used to things being simple. Click of a button brings the world. This needs to be more innovative and hotels are known to be dinosaurs in this regard.
• There are people breaking the industry with points and hotels need to get creative with rethinking rewards and what points can do in a way that’s unique to the brand.
• Show what a room looks like! Sometimes you have to call the hotel and ask if the rooms have been renovated recently.
• Joseph’s wife needs to start a blog finding great places to stay.
• Are influencers losing their uniqueness and effectiveness? Are micro-influencers the future? Social media isn’t really and micro influencers are being smart about their intentions and posts being more real. Their experiences are real and valid. 
• What’s the incentive for booking direct? It needs to be clear so people do it. We need clearer benefits.
• Biggest difference between International hospitality and American hospitality? Reimagination of boutique hotels. Around the world, she was introduced to the idea of boutique hotels before they influenced stateside thinking. We have a penchant for standardization in the US but it misses the local flair. 
• Adaptability of different positions in boutique hotels are a big difference. The person who checks you in is your concierge, too. This builds a connection throughout the stay. You talk to the same person for everythin