Another Restaurant Owner As a Great Example of Successful Entrepreneur

I am not sure if it is because running a good restaurant business could be very challenging; or if it is because the restaurant industry has a sales volume of $604 billion, hires 12.8 million employees, and has an overall economic impact of $1.7 trillion. I have found that public media love to use restaurant owners as good examples of successful entrepreneurs. This Fox News video, for example, also features an interview with Jeremy Merrin, the Founder and CEO of Havana Central, a growing Cuban restaurant chain. Let’s take a look at Jeremy’s secret ingredients:

Success starts from employee recruitment and selection: Hire the right people.
Train employees well.
Keep employees happy and retain them. Companies spend thousands of dollars in recruiting and training employees. Smart business leaders will certainly invest in their human capital and allow their employees to grow (stay) within the company.
Analytical skills are very important. Business decisions are made based on “numbers” in Havana Central.
In terms of cost control, Havana Central uses the 10-30-30 rule --- 10% or less (of sales) for rent, 30% or less for cost of good (food) sold, and 30% or less for labor cost.

Honestly, I do not see anything new from Jeremy Merrin’s recipe. Many business owners are well aware of the importance those ingredients discussed above. What matters is that Jeremy Merrin actually takes every ingredient seriously and consistently practices what he believes. Do you agree? What do you think of Jeremy’s secret ingredients for success?

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Linchi Kwok, Ph.D.

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