The Food Network - For Business?

April 4, 2008 · Filed Under Revolutionary Thinking, marketing · Comment 

I am a devout fan of the Food Network. I love it. Deep down inside there is a chef just dying to get out. Sadly, my television rests on the pre-school show stations these days, but late in the evening I get my fix.

One of my favorite chefs on the Food Network is Gordon Ramsay.  Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, if you’re not familiar with the show, features a different failing restaurant each episode. Ramsay comes in, examines the way the restaurant is run - from the cleanliness of the kitchen to the abilities of the wait staff and everything in between. He identifies where the problems are and helps the restaurant to turn around.

I think everyone in business should watch this show. There is always a great lesson than can be applied to any business, not just a restaurant.

The last episode I saw featured a restaurant that had a carvery set up for the twenty years prior.  The first-time restaurateur who had recently taken the restaurant over was advertising two-for-one deals (2 meals for $10)  in the papers and the only people that went to the restaurant had white hair and walkers. The restaurant was losing thousands of dollars a month. It was in a breathtaking building, but the menu was tired and the food was actually kind of disgustingly unsanitary.

First of all, Ramsay pointed out to the restaurant owner that when he looked at his dining room, half the people there were eating for free. He went on and on (the restaurant was very troubled) but his advice was falling on deaf ears. He told them they had to do away with the carvery and try something new. He had scoped out the neighborhood and saw that the area was missing a good grill. He proposed that this restaurant basically niche itself and become the “go-to grill”, if you will.

The owner was distraught and resistant to the idea. He thought the community would miss their carvery. His customers would be disappointed. Ramsay pointed out that he needed to breathe some fresh life into the business. It was so frustrating to watch this. The viewer knows the grill would work. Come on, it’s Gordon Ramsay. But the staff was not wanting any part of it.  Even though they were losing money every day, they did not want to change what they were doing. They became very set in their ways and afraid to change. They did make the changes Ramsay suggested (reluctantly) and it was extremely popular (of course). The restaurant was making a comeback.

I came away from that show with a handful of lessons:

  • No matter how pretty your building (branding) is, when it comes down to it, you need the food (services) to make people come back and tell their friends.
  • Niche-ing is important.
  • If something is not working in your business - don’t be so defensive. Even though you love your business, if it’s not making you money, be open to change.

I love to find a business lesson in my entertainment.

Oh…at the end of the episode, when they revisited the restaurant after Ramsay did his thing, they had revived the carvery on the weekends. Can you imagine?

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