I didn’t know what it meant when the general manager of my small bakery told me they picked up three new accounts last week. Susan, who runs Holman and Finch Bakery, told me after I asked her, “How are things?”
It turns out, my bakery was primarily created to serve businesses. It specializes in all-natural, locally-supplied baked goods which are sold to other restaurants. Last week, two very successful restaurant companies in Atlanta shut down their in-house bakeries and outsourced their operations to H&F Bakery. In the toughest of times, H&F Bakery expanded its business by signing up two new customers in an industry – table service restaurants – in which all businesses are trying to reduce costs. We can learn from this success.
First of all, it is so easy during these tough times to obsess about the difficulties of being in business. H&F Bakery built a niche around high quality, all-natural baked goods and its biggest challenge right now is keeping up with increased demand.
Second, restaurant operators (and retailers as well) are looking for ways to reduce costs with urgency while not sacrificing quality. To fulfill this search, they will turn to trusted brands represented by entrepreneurial businesses (Susan is very entrepreneurial).
Third, businesses in trouble want change. Our customers will look to Radiant to help with that change. The customers of our competitors will look for change as well. We want to be on the good side of change, not the depleted side.
Finally, a new product was built and marketed at the right time. Fortune Magazine was born during The Great Depression to bring near-tragic business stories of people to the masses. H&F Bakery created a product and service that was extremely relevant to these times. The right product has never mattered more.
What other success stories exist during these times? What can we learn from these stories and then create our own successes? What are the companies we serve looking for and how can we help now? These are the questions I am asking myself to ensure our relevance remains high to retail and hospitality businesses.
