Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue II, 2016 | Page 62

MULTI

BRAND

“I am transitioning a lot of our print advertising to social media.”
MANAGEMENT
Business philosophy: I treat my employees how I would like to be treated. I’m a
pretty nice person, probably too nice sometimes. I provide a great work environment.
Management method or style: To me it’s important to create a work environment that promotes teamwork, open communication, and honesty. I like to catch
people doing things right—rather than always looking at the wrong. It builds confidence within our employees and adds energy to the stores.
Greatest challenge: Making sure I have the right people in the right places to
grow my business.
How do others describe you? I think most would describe me as fun, caring,
generous, and loyal.
One thing I’m looking to do better: I would like to be a better leader and
less of a manager.
How I give my team room to innovate and experiment: Being part of
two quality franchise systems, there isn’t much need to come up with new products.
The proof is in the success of both brands.
How close are you to operations? I’m in contact with my area managers
multiple times throughout the day, discussing operational tasks as well as other critical business activities.
What are the two most important things you rely on from your
franchisor? Great products an d great marketing are the keys to our success—
which Hungry Howie’s and Jimmy John’s do very well.
What I need from vendors: Timely delivery and quality products, and at a
fair price.

Have you changed your marketing strategy in response to the
economy? How? The economy has really rebounded in Grand Rapids, so I really
haven’t had to do anything out of the ordinary with the marketing. Delivering a
timely and well-executed product to our customers is the key.
How is social media affecting your business? I am transitioning a lot
of our print advertising to social media. It’s much easier to target and connect with
specific groups of customers.
How do you hire and fire? My team tries to take their time hiring new employees. If they have a bad apple, they like to remove that person from our system
as soon as possible. Hire slow. Fire fast.
How do you train and retain? In such a fast-paced environment it’s critical
for our employees to be comfortable to execute successfully. We try to give our
employees the tools to succeed from the beginning. Well-organized systems and
processes provide our employees with a map to that success, building confidence
and courage to step up into new roles. Retention is built on trust and opportunity,
as well as having quality managers who lead by example. We think this reminds
all that opportunity is there to grow within our company. An energized, fun work
environment helps a great deal as well.
How do you deal with problem employees? Personally, I don’t have to
that often. I have a great team of area managers who are great with people. They
try to work with the problem employees and their store managers to resolve the
issue in a professional manner.
Fastest way into my doghouse: Lazy or dishonest team members.

BOTTOM LINE
Annual revenue: $16 million.
2016 goals: $20 million.
Growth meter: How do you measure your growth? By the number
of new stores I open and average sales per unit. I am putting the finishing touches
on the fourth and fifth Jimmy John’s locations I’ve opened in the last six months,
so my growth expectation is pretty high right now.
Vision meter: Where do you want to be in 5 years? 10 years?
In 5 years I would like to have 30 locations in operation, and in 10 years I would
like to be living somewhere warm.
How is the economy in your region affecting you, your employees, your customers? The economy in Grand Rapids has really rebounded in
the last 4 years. We just had our busiest year ever, so I would say it’s good to all
of us.
How do changes in the economy affect the way you do business?
We keep doing the only thing we know how to do: deliver fast, fresh, quality products to our customers. When you deliver exceptional customer experience, people
will come, no matter what the economy is doing.
How do you forecast for your business? I project sales and profit goals at
the beginning of each year based on previous sales and continued growth initiatives.

58

What are the best sources for capital expansion? With our latest
expansion, 33 percent of the total investment was funded on our own, with the
rest borrowed from a local bank.
Experience with private equity, local banks, national banks, other
institutions? Why/why not? I have a great relationship with a local bank.
Compared with all of the other methods I’ve used over the last 21 years, it has
been the easiest.
What are you doing to take care of your employees? I provide them
with a very generous bonus system, a fun working environment, and health insurance.
How are you handling rising employee costs (payroll, minimum
wage, healthcare, etc.)? Unfortunately we’ve had to raise our prices to
cover these costs, but our food is still a great value for the quality products our
customers receive.
How do you reward/recognize top-performing employees? We
always try to promote from within our company.
What kind of exit strategy do you have in place? I don’t have plans
on exiting anytime soon.

MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE IS S UE II, 2016

muf16-2_heath.indd 58

4/2/16 2:37 PM