Ibrahim ad Hashim Choudhry
What does it take to be number one – the top in business or field of expertise? Some may say it is luck. That successful people are just in the right place at the right time, lucky to have found that perfect location for their business, stumbling across the right idea at the right time, blessed to have met the perfect person to help them reach their goal, or that success just –well, just happens. In my opinion, nothing is further from the truth. Can luck play a small role in starting your way to success? Maybe, a small part, but business is what you make of it and success depends on how much you put into it. To be number one and successful in business you need to manage. What you do not manage doesn’t happen.
What do I mean by you need to manage your way to the top? What I mean is you must plan, strategize and practice. You must have a plan for what you want to achieve, strategize and think hard about what you need to do to get there, and then put your well-thought out strategy, your plan, into practice. As I’m sitting here in Toronto Pearson International airport, reflecting on the most successful Mother’s Day week, the most successful week ever by the way, in Edible Arrangements history, I would like to tell you about one of our franchisees who in just over two short years turned around one of our stores and took it all the way to number one –number one in sales – in the Edible Arrangements system.
Before I tell you about brothers Ibrahim and Hashim, I must first give a huge thank you to all of Edible Arrangements amazing franchisees. Together, they fulfilled over 700,000 orders in one week, making countless mothers and loved ones happy this past holiday. Every single franchisee managed this holiday perfectly, following a plan they worked out months, and in some cases, years in advance. Such is the case of Ibrahim and Hashim, who had a goal from the day they bought their first store in Claremont, California in 2009 to be #1 in the entire Edible Arrangements system.
Shortly after opening their Claremont store, Ibrahim and Hashim decided to purchase their second store in nearby Moreno Valley. Up to this point, Moreno Valley was a store that had not yet lived up to its potential but the two brothers had a plan and were convinced with proper management they could take this store to the top –quickly. With laser like focus, they implemented their strategy, one that they created in turning their first store into a success, that in short, details how to not only better manage their business during busy holiday times, but manage their team members and the overall business throughout the entire year. It didn’t happen the first week, month or year, and they knew nothing would happen instantaneously, but in just over two short years they reached their goal of having the highest sales in the Edible Arrangements system during the Mother’s Day holiday week. Ibrahim and Hashim had a goal from the very beginning to be at the top, and it wasn’t luck that took them there in such short time, but proper management and planning. Today, three years after opening their first store, Ibrahim and Hashim have four very successful stores in California: Claremont, Moreno Valley, Rancho Palos Verdes and Laguna Hills.
So, what does it take to get to the top? Managing –managing your destiny! What you do not manage will not happen. Leave the luck to the unprepared!
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