During the past seven years, the trials and tribulations of the U.S. economy have been well-documented. We all can recall the new economy's buzz words: bailouts, rightsizing, doing less with more and so forth. While much has changed within the U.S. economy, one thing remains the same. Namely, family-owned businesses remain a driving force in today's economy.
We've had many successes at Cafe Gratitude and Gracias Madre restaurants over the last ten years. What started as an idea — an experiment even — grew into a business that has surpassed our wildest dreams. Our restaurants now have multiple locations in California and one in Kansas City, Mo. We've even had the opportunity to teach the unique tools used in our company to other organizations like Whole Foods and Dharma Merchants.
One doesn't need to know a lot about foodservice design to realize that for such a phrase to exist, it must refer to someone who is not only highly regarded but who has attained the pinnacle of peer recognition and respect.
Cooking can be an inspiring, romantic process. Creating food for yourself or friends at home is a wonderful experience, often without timelines or pressure. Most of the time, cooking in a professional kitchen is the opposite.
We work in a fun industry. I am sure other industries are fun, too, but I know that by catering to the hospitality business you get to work in great locations, eat in good places, and spend time with people that share your appreciation for hospitality. That being the case, why do so many members of the supply chain struggle to attract and retain good young talent?
From cronuts to 3D printing, it's hard to turn on your android device without some new fad, craze, or trend forcing its way into the modern lexicon. The pace of change seems unrelenting. And we are left to decide what is real and what is virtual, what will last and what will turn out to be a temporary diversion.
The unvarnished truth can be a difficult thing to deliver sometimes. It's in our nature to want to soften harsh facts with language that makes the message we're trying to relay more palatable. Take the ad in this issue about FE&S' upcoming Best in Class study. In the ad we tell you that filling out the questionnaire is "fast and easy."
Given the business climate in recent years, it is understandable why so many companies have had to cut back. It's hard to find a business that's not doing more with less these days.
In this issue of Foodservice Equipment and Supplies we proudly showcase the results from the magazine's 2014 Performance in Tabletop Awards.
This year, Buffalo Hotel Supply Co. celebrates 75 years as a family-owned business. My grandfather, James M. Bedard Sr. founded the company in 1938, the last year of the Great Depression and not the best time to start a new venture. He had lost his job with the Buffalo-based Larkin Soap Company, one of the largest mail-order catalog companies in the world at the time and was experiencing significant financial difficulties. The Larkin Soap Company had founded and owned Buffalo Pottery Company, which eventually became known as Buffalo China and, eventually, a division of Oneida.
Going green is no longer an extra step foodservice companies take to stand out — creating a green culture has become a lasting movement that affects how we do business, how consumers buy products and services and how the industry chooses leaders.
The recent sales of the Washington Post and the Boston Globe to successful entrepreneurs Jeff Bezos and John Henry, respectively, provide me with an opportunity to talk with you for a moment about our business philosophy here at Zoomba Group and what it means to you, our reader.
Plato famously said, "Necessity is the Mother of Invention."
In response to the recession, corporations everywhere had to find creative ways to do more with fewer employees. Naturally, that trend has influenced the business and industry (B&I) foodservice professionals that support many of these companies.
Like other small businesses in the foodservice industry the leadership at Curtis Restaurant Supply tries to look at all options that will increase the productivity and profitability of the company. As part of our ongoing efforts, we discovered that going green can be good business.
There seems to be an inherently macro view of today's consultant as one that has not changed parallel to the rest of the industry, or, in some cases, has resisted change. And many in the industry believe the growth of design dealers will spell the end of traditional foodservice consultants. Although some of these views jump to premature conclusions, I do tend to agree with certain aspects of these opinions.
A s we get set to shift our attention to 2014, it’s a great time to reflect on all that’s happened during the course of this year. Here at FE&S, it has been a remarkable year highlighted by the celebration of our 65th anniversary. I would like to personally thank all of our readers, advertisers, and industry contributors who helped make this the best year in this publication’s illustrious history as measured by any metric that you choose.
The mind works in mysterious ways. Or so we have always been told. Actually it simply works separately from our physical experience, so it ends up being more of a spin doctor for our conditioned-response selves. While we like to think it presents, through consciousness, complete thoughts or integrated ideas, the mind actually only works in data bytes. Bits and pieces of ideas, thoughts and perceptions can linger independently in the brain, unconnected, until an event or comment triggers a connective stimulus. What this means is that the mystery is quite specifically: Why did it put those bytes together? So why am I talking about this in a foodservice industry magazine?
A gainst a backdrop of unprecedented dysfunction that includes the government shutdown and the novel threat of U.S. debt default playing out as bargaining strategies before a world of bewildered onlookers, it's good to know that at least in the business world people can still work together for the common good.
As a former operator and distributor sales rep, I understand the critical overlap between these two vital roles in the successful implementation of a foodservice plan of action.
