fresh&co CEO George Tenedios on Building Loyalty Culture — Restaurant Influencers (RI006) | Summary and Q&A
TL;DR
George Tenedios, CEO of Fresh and Co, discusses his family-owned business and their focus on local, organic, healthy, and diverse meal options.
Key Insights
- 🆕 Fresh and Co prioritizes loyalty to their staff and offers growth opportunities within the company.
- 😜 They focus on training and developing their employees, many of whom have risen through the ranks.
- 📱 They avoid using prebiotic and probiotic marketing tactics as they believe customers are smarter than that.
- 📌 Fresh and Co is expanding through franchising, with upcoming locations in Orlando, West Chester, and Connecticut.
- 👨💼 Tenedios emphasizes the importance of loving the restaurant business and being willing to put in long hours and hard work.
- 💌 Customers can interact with Fresh and Co on social media or via email.
- 👻 Host Shawn Walchef encourages listeners to support Fresh and Co and explore franchising opportunities.
Transcript
Welcome to Restaurant Influencers, powered by Entreprenuer and Yelp, I am your host, Shawn Walchef, founder of Cali Barbecue Media in life and in the restaurant business, we learned through lessons and stories. Today we have the founder and CEO of Fresh and Co George Tenedios. Welcome to the show. Close? Tenedios. (laughs) We're going to keep that ... Read More
Questions & Answers
Q: What sets Fresh and Co apart from other restaurants?
Fresh and Co distinguishes itself by offering a diverse menu with local, organic, and healthy options. Customers can enjoy various meal experiences, from egg white wraps to paninis, depending on their preferences.
Q: How has technology impacted Fresh and Co's operations?
Fresh and Co already had some technology in place pre-COVID, such as a loyalty program. During lockdown, they upgraded their systems and implemented a more robust backend integration to streamline operations. They also introduced a three-tier loyalty system for better customer engagement.
Q: What was the motivation behind upgrading to the Toast point-of-sale system?
Fresh and Co upgraded from their outdated legacy system to Toast due to its advanced features, better performance, and improved integration capabilities. Toast checked all the boxes for their operational needs.
Q: Has Fresh and Co incorporated any mentors or coaches into their business strategy?
George Tenedios credits his father, who is also his partner in the business, as his mentor. He has been in the restaurant industry for over 40 years and provides guidance and expertise.
Summary & Key Takeaways
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Fresh and Co is a family-owned business established in 2010 that offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner with local, organic, and healthy ingredients.
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They provide a diverse menu, allowing customers to have a different meal experience every time they visit.
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The biggest challenge Fresh and Co faces is the labor shortage in the post-COVID period.