Month: August 2015

Remove what doesn’t look like David

While marveling at Michelangelo’s brilliant sculpture, David, the Pope asked how he knew what to chip away from his block of stone to get to his final work. The sculptor’s reply, “It’s easy. I just remove everything that doesn’t look like David.” It’s common to think you need to add things to your business. But […]

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The most important question to ask interviewees

Kimberly Shingledecker started Pies & Pints along with partner David Bailey in Fayetteville, WV in 2003 in the basement of a house. By 2005 they had two-hour waits and needed to buy a building with more space. The growth hasn’t slowed down much since, and today there are eight locations with a ninth opening soon. […]

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The two lists

I graduated from the UNCW Cameron Business School in 1998. Until my last year of school – which was 6 or 7 years into my on/off college career – I just didn’t enjoy what I was being taught. I was taking classes that I was supposed to take and was skipping tons of them due […]

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"My lack of experience helped"

Rob Ward and his three business partners started Cantina 76 in Columbia, S.C. in November, 2009. They had no experience owning restaurants, and not much experience in the restaurant business at all. They now have two locations and recently opened Za’s Brickoven Pizza. Their restaurants are successful and well-liked in Columbia, and it was fun […]

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Write your own playbook

I couldn’t believe how lucky I had just gotten. It was the fall of 2008 here in Charlotte, and I walked into the door of the nearby location of a large fast casual fresh-mex restaurant franchise, and there was Paul. I had worked for Paul a dozen years earlier, making salsa at a similar fast […]

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Selling it is not the only way

Years ago we decided that we just didn’t like trying to sell people on Schedulefly. We decided instead to just let them try it (when the timing was right for them) and if they liked it – they would become a customer. Our course we do work hard to make sure that it is clear […]

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"Do something common uncommonly well"

Dave Query started Big Red F Restaurant Group in 1993 and has turned it into a highly successful business with five concepts and soon-to-be thirteen total locations. In the five years I’ve been interviewing restaurant owners, Dave has always been one of my favorites. He’s transparent, honest, wise, and able to articulate his beliefs and […]

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"If you jump in with both feet, doors will open"

Rayme Rossello is a very positive and inspiring person, who first co-owned a restaurant in 1999. That restaurant was very successful and grew to five locations over seven years, but Rayme sold her share of the business to her partner to try something different. After an unsuccessful partnership in a french bistro, she questioned herself […]

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