Last week, it was my privilege to be able to share with you some exciting information regarding Edible Cares’ new Hero’s Welcome program, as well as our contribution to the International Franchise Association’s VetFran program. Just a few days ago, it was my honor to be able to speak about this before my colleagues at the IFA’s 53rd annual convention in Las Vegas, which I attended along with my brother Kamran Farid (COO of EAI) as well as Frank Garrido, our VP of Operations, Training and Operations Development.
The IFA is the world’s largest and oldest organization representing franchising worldwide, and for more than half a century it has been working to protect, enhance and promote franchising through government relations, public relations and education programs. In 2009, they honored me with their Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and I was pleased to be able to return to the convention this year, after having to miss part of last year’s convention, which was scheduled during Valentine’s Day, our busiest time of the year.
I was thrilled to have the chance to speak about something that’s so close to my heart and to the heart of my company. I will have more to share on this exciting opportunity very soon, including images from the event itself, so please stay tuned!
This is a continuation of the blog entry I made yesterday on July 12 where I mentioned my discussion with hundreds of young adults at a conference in Washington, DC. In this entry I want to briefly mention some of the suggestions I made to our young adults on what they may want to consider doing to take advantage of the opportunities that only America can offer.
As I told the students it’s important to set a goal, work as hard as you can and focus your energy on achieving it. In my opinion, you are never too young to set goals. Some people may say a fourteen or fifteen year old is too immature to set goals, but I would argue for setting goals as early as possible. You are never too young to realize what inspires you as it is this inspiration that helps define your goals. I knew I wanted to be a businessman when I was very young and opened my first business, a flower shop in East Haven, when I was seventeen and still in high school. In a few years I owned and operated 4 flower shops with the help of my family, started a computer business and started Edible Arrangements.
Also, two of Edible Arrangements most successful franchisees, brothers Ibrahim and Hashim Choudhry, knew they wanted to be businessmen when they were teenagers. So they obtained a job as Edible Arrangements field trainers, learned all they could and a few years later opened their first Edible Arrangements store in Claremont, California. They now have four stores and have become among the leaders in sales nationwide. The key for them, and me when I was a teenager, was to approach work and every job task no matter how menial on the surface it may appear to be with a mindset of learning.
Edible Arrangements franchisees Hashim and Ibrahim Choudhry
When working always look at how you can learn no matter what you are doing. I’ve said this many times, but one of my best and most rewarding jobs was working at McDonald’s when I was sixteen years old. I started out with what many thought was the lowest job on the totem pole, but I didn’t see it that way. I approached that job as a learning opportunity and gave it all I had. My superiors noticed my passion for what I was doing and quickly promoted me to other positions which I tackled with the same goal of learning. I came to appreciate the importance of learning when working and to taking pride in what you are doing. If you do, people will notice and the knowledge gained will be useful to you in the future.
It’s also important to be optimistic and not afraid to take risks. Don’t paralyze yourself with worry about making mistakes, especially at a young age. Some of the biggest technologies and inventions would never have happened if a culture of fear permeated the country. Young people must continue to push boundaries, risk failure and take chances. However, you must act with intelligent passion, not with reckless abandon, but with a well-thought out, focused purpose. Also, focus your energy on thinking and planning what you want to achieve. Don’t waste all your energy on the latest video game or gadget. I’m not saying you shouldn’t have fun or enjoy recreation, but set reasonable limits on play so you have the energy to focus on your goals.
Finally, I thought it was important to remind our young adults to be thankful for what we have here in America. All of us have the responsibility to build on what our predecessors have already contributed to this great country, and we must appreciate, respect and honor them. Ask yourself how you can contribute and honor a society that gave you so much -so much opportunity. The sacrifices our forbearers made have allowed us to enjoy the freedoms, the quality of life and opportunities we have today. Don’t take it for granted and assume what we have will always be here. The American opportunity is still available for those willing to grasp it. Set goals, work hard with focus an intelligent passion, learn from every opportunity and the American dream can be yours.
On Monday I was honored to be a guest speaker at a leadership conference for young adults, students ages 16-24, in Washington, D.C. Many of the attendees were children of families who immigrated to the United States, like me. The theme of my discussion, and one of the goals of the conference, was providing guidance and advice on what it takes, what skills are required, to be successful entrepreneurs, and good leaders.
Student Faraz Mirza and Tariq Farid
This is an area I am very passionate about. I strongly believe that we are blessed to be living in America and our onlylimitations are the constraints we put on ourselves. It was important for me to explain to the audience that it’s not just about checking off a list of acquired skills that will make you successful, rather it’s more about identifying what it is you want to do and work with intelligent passion to make it happen. It’s important that young adults recognize the opportunity that is open to them by being in the United States. It’s really the American opportunity that leads to the American Dream. In my discussion I felt it was important to tell the audience my own personal story and that of my family.
In 1906, my maternal great-grandfather emigrated from what was then known as British India to the United States. He, like many others, came to America because of the opportunity for work in rebuilding San Francisco after the great earthquake of 1906. When he returned home he entranced his family and many others with stories about the generosity of the people and the tremendous opportunities available in America. Even after the partition of India in 1947, which lead to the formation of the sovereign states of Pakistan and the Republic of India, when family members were forced into refugee camps, my grandfather’s stories about the greatness of and opportunities in America kept their hopes and dreams alive.
Likewise, the dream of my grandparents and that of their children was to go to America and build a new life. For them and countless others, America symbolized hope, opportunity and the ability to achieve anything with hard work. Ever since she was a little girl, my mother planned to come to America. She knew one day she would get here as America was the best and only place to raise her children and give them the chance to live their dreams. My mother was so proud on that day of August 14, 1981 when she arrived in America to experience firsthand everything she heard in her grandfather’s stories. From that very first day my mother taught my siblings and me the importance of taking advantage of what is here, setting goals and focusing on them with laser-like precision, being optimistic and honoring those that came before us.
I tell this story as the America of today still provides hope, opportunity and fulfillment of dreams for millions of people. Don’t let all the negativity and naysayers try to convince you otherwise. This land of opportunity has not been diminished. However, it’s how you take advantage of this opportunity that matters. In my next blog entry I will discuss what I told the students about how to take advantage of the opportunities that only America can offer.
A few weeks ago we held our very first Fruit Summit at our Edible Arrangements corporate headquarters in Wallingford, CT. What is a Fruit Summit? It’s the name we gave –our business is fruit after all – our in-person brainstorming session with our franchisees. For three days, we hosted an amazing group of Edible Arrangements owners from across North America to listen and learn from them.
By bringing a representative group of our franchisees together for an open discussion to discuss key areas impacting their business, we were afforded the opportunity to obtain their feedback before finalizing system-wide initiatives. Most importantly, we wanted franchisees to understand the “why” behind each initiative, thus enabling them to give us their informed point of view.
You may think this seems obvious, getting the involvement and feedback from your franchisees (if you are a franchisor), employees, vendors or customers before your company announces new initiatives, products or services. But unfortunately many companies move forward too quickly without taking the time to follow this step, to their detriment in many instances. I know it may be hard to admit, but you –we -don’t know it all. The corporate hierarchy (or government/political hierarchy for that matter) –the executives in charge of running business organizations (or government institutions) –can become insulated and arrogant, leading to bad decisions and strategies that are not well-thought out.
Major company decisions should not be made in a vacuum without the input from others inside, and in some cases even outside, your organization. I’m not saying every single business decision needs to be completely vetted, run by or approved by your customers, employees or franchisees –that would be both unrealistic, unproductive and probably would result in organizational paralysis. However, for key initiatives it can be very beneficial to put it out there and get feedback because more than likely you will get advice that you may not have thought of before. The ultimate goal of course is a better product, program, service or initiative.
I’ll admit it, at the beginning of my entrepreneurial career I may not have always practiced what I’m currently preaching. Yes, I always sought input and feedback from my customers, but I wasn’t always so open-minded or welcomed feedback, especially critical feedback, from others. But with experience comes maturity –maturity of mind, perspective, and attitude. My father always told me that with experience comes wisdom. How right he was –and still is! I’ve come to appreciate the importance of listening before acting, and I believe the share act of keeping an open mind and maintaining a willingness to change can help everyone in business, and their customers.
This week is a very special week for a special group of people. This week, May 20-26, is National Small Business Week, which recognizes the enormous contributions that small businesses, small business owners, make in our economy and in millions of people’s lives. As the President, and many economists, correctly state day in and day out –small businesses are the backbone of our economy.
Not only do small businesses help drive the economy and employ millions of people, but small businesses are the leaders in innovation which create new markets and new jobs. I will always be a small businessman at heart, and will always operate Edible Arrangements like a small business (as should you) no matter how many people we employ or revenue generated. What I mean is that no matter how large your business becomes, your business must never lose that entrepreneurial spirit, desire for change and to push boundaries, and commitment for innovation. Those characteristics make any business thrive, no matter the size. You must always seek to improve, to change to stay ahead of the competition or enter new markets, take calculated yet informed risks, and act with intelligent passion, and never get stifled by a rigid corporate hierarchy or culture.
Probably one of the most satisfying aspects for me in being a part of Edible Arrangements astounding growth from the first franchised location in 2001 to over 1,000 locations worldwide today is watching so many people realize their dreams of becoming small business owners. Just like me when I opened my first flower shop when I was a teenager, so many people have a passion to chart their own destiny and open their own business. It’s part of the American psyche and in its DNA –a thirst for entrepreneurship and mapping your own path. The opportunity is there –now grasp it! I find it encouraging that according to media reports, more than half of today’s youth, particularly the more than 46 million Millennials (people in their 20’s to early 30’s), or Generation Y as they are known (I wonder who comes up with these names) want to start their own businesses. Naysayers may say that this is because of the economy and difficulty in finding a job, but I would like to believe there is more to it than that. I believe that people are finally recognizing the personal satisfaction, challenge, enrichment and opportunity available by becoming a small business owner, and the desire to have more control over their lives.
People such as Judy Annunziata, an Edible Arrangements franchisee who opened her first store in Newburgh, NY in 2006, and now owns 2 more stores in Middletown and Monroe, NY, was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug at an early age. She worked in the family restaurant for years before temporarily getting a “corporate” job as a paralegal then, after realizing her passion belongs in the small business world, went back to the family restaurant before opening her first Edible Arrangements store. I would like to also add that Judy is now also the face of Edible Arrangements as she is featured in our latest whimsical “World of Edible Arrangements” TV commercial. So many people are like Judy, except for starring in a TV commercial, who share a dream and a passion to be a small business owner, and then act on it.
Let’s all celebrate small business week together, and maybe, just maybe someday soon, you will finally carry out your dreams of becoming an entrepreneur and start your own business. I’m living my dreams as a business owner helping others becoming small business owners. Nothing makes me happier than celebrating their successes.
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