Category: Edible Arrangements

Edible Arrangements was named one of America’s fastest-growing privately held businesses in America by Inc. Magazine and has been ranked first in its category by Entrepreneur Magazine’s Annual “Franchise 500” Ranking for the past seven consecutive years. In 2011, Edible Arrangements was ranked 9th on Forbes.com ‘Top Franchises for the Money” listing. In February of 2009, Tariq was named “Entrepreneur of the Year” by the International Franchise Association, whose members include more than 1,300 franchise systems, 11,000 franchisees and 500 suppliers. In June 2009 Tariq was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2009 Award in the Retail and Consumer Products category in Metro New York.

The other day I was reading my e-mails when I came across one from an amazing franchisee, Cathy, who owns the Edible Arrangements stores in Catonsville, MD and her latest store featuring the Edible To Go extended product line that opened in Elkridge, MD in February of this year. But before I discuss what makes Cathy a role model for the system, and her incredible public relations and marketing savvy that we all can learn from, her e-mail reminded me of something I wanted to write about previously.

There are many challenges and decisions that businesses, both new and established, face every single day. Whether it is identifying your target market (yes, your ‘customer’ will evolve), staying ahead of the competition, continuously analyzing your company’s strengths and weaknesses, improving customer service, cutting costs without sacrificing quality and service, increasing productivity, figuring out what new markets to enter and when, and how to grow your brand, to name just a few. First, I have to just say that challenges should be welcomed and embraced, not feared. As an entrepreneur you should look forward to what the challenge will be that day –then set out to conquer it. Second and more importantly, make sure you don’t go too far outside your mission, outside your company’s DNA, too soon and introduce new products or services just to grow your market share and increase sales.

Cathy’s pictures in her e-mail of her latest store’s grand opening showcasing Edible To Go Products reminded me of this and sent back some searing memories of a new product Edible Arrangements was considering introducing a few years ago. It was a time when we were contemplating menu options in addition to our world-famous arrangements to drive traffic to our now 1,000+ stores –a precursor to our Edible To Go, grab and go product line we now have. I will not get into all the products and details we were considering but one item we came close to finalizing was fruit sandwiches. Yes, I said it –sandwiches made mainly from fruit, and a few other ingredients. I know most of you are saying to yourselves what on earth were we thinking, but those of you in business know that sometimes an idea takes on a life of its own and grows. Luckily, a mentor to my brother Kamran and I (the importance of having a mentor will be one of my blog entries soon) woke us up to the fact that no customer would buy such a concoction.

The valuable lesson we learned is do not step too far too soon outside what you do and know just to drive sales and reach a goal. A business must look inside itself, perfect what it does and what it is known for, master it and become experts. At Edible Arrangements, we are the fruit experts. We know fruit. We learned from this near mistake and created our Edible To Go extended product line –products made simply from fresh fruit – for customers to come into one of our stores for a healthy, pick-me-up snack such as our fresh fruit smoothies, fruit salads, fruit sundaes, many kinds of chocolate dipped fruit, pineapple pops in many of our signature pineapple shapes dipped in chocolate, and much more. This is all in addition to our signature bouquets. Not all Edible Arrangements stores carry the Edible to Go extended product line -yet, but all stores carry our grab and go items like salads, smoothies and dipped fruit. Yes, we are expanding our menu options, but we are staying true to our roots and our expertise, and the product we know best –fresh fruit and nothing else.

Now that I digressed a little bit, I wanted to showcase Cathy not only because she is one of our most successful and passionate franchisees, but because she is also really good at marketing and staging an event. Case in point, she recently held her grand opening celebration for her new store in Elkridge on April 14. The community turned out in droves. Why? Because she planned, drafted a personal, localized press release, created eye-catching invites, and executed the event perfectly. I couldn’t be more pleased by her professionalism, commitment to her community, customer service skills, and hard-work. Cathy never does anything half-hazardly, nor should you. In business, a customer can see right through imposters and those who simply are not prepared. Lose their trust and you may never get it back. Show them you are prepared, professional and engaging, you will have a customer for life.

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As they say, everything is bigger in Texas, and now Edible Arrangements is getting bigger in the Lone Star state as well with 2 new stores opening soon. And the enterprise of one of our most talented franchisees, Reva Gartzke, is also getting bigger as she has signed an agreement to open another Edible Arrangements store in the Cedar Park, TX region. This will be Reva’s fourth store in Texas. Her other three stores are located in Austin and Round Rock, Texas. Reva has been an Edible Arrangements franchise owner since 2006, and a mentor for many franchisees and role model for the brand. Not only is she passionate about her business and taking care of her customers, but her passion, and compassion, extends to the many charitable causes she participates in, none more so than her leadership role as a mentor and volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Reva is a big part of our system, and we are proud of her and her accomplishments.

In addition, I’m happy to welcome a new franchise owner to the Edible Arrangements system. Carlman Daniel and his family are making the big move to Texas as he will be opening an Edible Arrangements store in Conroe, and a second location in Texas shortly thereafter. Carlman and his family embody the community spirit that is prevalent in so many of our franchisees. Carl and his wife were actively involved in their community in New York, and opened and managed several preschool and nursery schools, as well as a beauty supply store. I’m certain the great people of Texas will welcome the Daniel family as they start building a new life in Texas, and getting heavily involved in community activities.

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Raising the WOW Factor in the Sunshine State

Jack and Rebecca

After bringing one of our delicious, made-to-order Edible Arrangements bouquets to an event and instantly becoming the center of attention, Jack got an inkling that there might just be something special about this unique brand and its fresh fruit product line. Once he discovered that all EDIBLE ARRANGEMENTS® franchise locations are locally owned and operated, he knew he wanted one of his own. And now, he and his wife Rebecca are opening their third Florida location, in Orange City.

Working for years as a computer technician, Jack now enjoys a more people-centric role, bringing joy to the public on a regular basis. In fact, he moved from New Jersey to Florida in the first place just to be a part of our franchise. He is a franchisee who truly lives by the EDIBLE ARRANGEMENTS® mission –“To Wow You”:

“It comes down to that WOW factor that we always speak about. Nothing beats experiencing it. That will push you more, day after day, to perform and to give to the business. Sometimes I take deliveries myself when I’m short on drivers, and even after five or six years in this business, I still enjoy seeing those beautiful smiles when people open the door, or you walk into the office and they see the basket. This is something that keeps fueling my engine.”

Jack’s positive attitude and entrepreneurial courage have enabled him to succeed as an EDIBLE ARRANGEMENTS® Fruit Expert–so much so that he was recently profiled by Fairwinds Credit Union, the banking institution he works with in Florida. And now, with the new Orange City store—added to locations in Orlando and Lake Mary—his story continues to inspire.

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Taking the Short Road to Multi-Unit Ownership

Sathya and DJ

Very often, the franchisees who are the most successful are the ones who allow their dedication and desire to lead the way, and insist on taking the greater challenge, rather than the easier path. For some, this means making the leap into multi-unit ownership in relatively short order. While slowly and steadily nurturing a single unit is the chosen approach for some, it’s not for everyone.

Take Dhananjaya “DJ” & Sathya of Alpharetta, Georgia, for example. This hard-working husband/wife team just opened their first Edible Arrangements location in nearby Suwannee less than three months ago. Yet rather than resting on their laurels, they’re immediately expanding their enterprise to a second location right in their hometown of Alpharetta.

As with their first store, DJ and Sathya intend to share the responsibilities of owning and operating their Alpharetta location, delivering happiness to as many northwestern Georgians as possible. With their kind of work ethic, I’m confident those potential customers are in very good hands.

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Edible Arrangements in Good Hands in Saudi Arabia

Edible Arrangements International is just that—an international company. Over the past several years, I’ve taken pride in watching the robust growth the franchise has enjoyed, not just here in the United States, but all over the world as well. One of the top nations in which this growth has occurred is Saudi Arabia. In July 2008, we signed a master franchise agreement with Nourah Al Rossais to develop stores there, and now she has just signed a subfranchise agreement for the eighth Saudi Arabian Edible Arrangements location, scheduled to officially open next month.

The store will be owned and operated by Satam Al-Amar, an experienced Fruit Expert with a store in Al-Khobar already under his belt. It’s our first store in Al Dammam, the capital of Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. Added to current Edible Arrangements locations in Riyadh and Jeddah, this means that Edible Arrangements is now represented in the top three largest cities in the country.

I wish Satam and Nourah continued success in their efforts to strengthen the Edible Arrangements brand in Saudi Arabia. Nourah in particular is a fine example of what a master franchisee can accomplish, and the growth of our franchise in her home country sets an example from which anyone trying to expand a system overseas can learn.

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