Almost every day something happens that makes me very proud of the Edible Arrangements franchise owners and team members. One particular moment comes each month when new franchise owners arrive at our Corporate Headquarters in Wallingford, Connecticut for training. Continue reading “A learning experience becomes a cause for good”
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Ibrahim, in the center of the bottom row, celebrates another record Mother’s Day sales performance with some of his Moreno Valley team members.
Shortly after Mother’s Day each year for the past four years I’ve received a phone call from one of our most successful franchisees, Ibrahim Choudhry, thanking me for convincing him to take over the Edible Arrangements location in Moreno Valley, California. That’s because for each of the past four years, his Moreno Valley store has been #1 in sales for the entire Edible Arrangements franchise system. The credit, however, goes to Ibrahim and what he has accomplished.
It is a story that is inspirational and an example of what a passionate and inspired leader such as Ibrahim can accomplish with an equally dedicated team. It is also one we can all learn from.
The story began five-and-half years ago. The Moreno Valley store had been closed for six months and the area around the store had been hit especially hard by the economic downturn. Several other Edible Arrangements franchisees had already turned down opportunities to take over the location when we approached Ibrahim about reopening it.
Ibrahim was no stranger to the location, having spent time with the original franchisee years earlier while still working for us as a trainer in the corporate office. And when the Moreno Valley location became available, he already had one successful turnaround to his credit.
Ibrahim had left his corporate position in 2009 to take over a closed location in Claremont, Calif., which he quickly turned into one of the most successful Edible Arrangements stores in the nation.
I traveled to California to visit with him about taking over a second failed location.
He was obviously concerned that other franchisees had already turned down opportunities to reopen the store. There was a lot of negative publicity to overcome from customers, from employees and even the government. A lot of people were owed money, but I told him I was convinced he could do it.
Ibrahim agreed to purchase the equipment and renegotiated the lease with the landlord in order not to take on more debt. Then he put all his effort into making the store a success.
He was in the store every day and he bombarded the area with marketing and publicity campaigns. For several months he had to pay rent and bills using income from his other store, but by the end of the first year the effort was paying off and the store was on its way to becoming a record-setter.
Today, Ibrahim has six successful Edible Arrangements locations in California, and all were either struggling or had closed outright when he took them over.
How does he do it?
“There are two things that I believe are critical to success,” he says.
“First, the owner has to have influence and a presence in the store — even if you have six of them. I make sure that I’m a very important part of each one of my businesses. I may not be taking orders or making deliveries, but I make sure my presence is felt at all my stores.
“Second, if you don’t accommodate people when they NEED you, such as the holidays, they certainly won’t want you tomorrow. When a holiday comes around, I push my team and myself to the limit. We try not to turn away a single customer because we know they need us. That has been the key to our success.”
And once again, that strategy has paid off with record sales for a store that only a few years ago was out of business.
Congratulations Ibrahim and thank you for being an inspiration to us all. I look forward to receiving many more phone calls in the coming years!
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In franchising, nothing is more important than the success of the franchisees. If our franchisees are growing and are prospering, it means that all the hard work that has gone into building Edible Arrangements has been worthwhile. It means that our products and services are delivering on their promise and making everyone’s life a little sweeter.
That’s why I am always excited to learn about franchisees renewing their franchise agreement, such as Richard, who recently renewed his agreement for the Centennial, Colorado, location.
Richard originally discovered Edible Arrangements in January of 2005 while relocating one of his Curves franchises to a much larger space. He received a postcard in the mail promoting the Edible Arrangements franchise opportunity. His wife, Stacey, tossed it in the trash. The more she thought about it, however, she decided to pull the postcard out of the trash and show it to Richard.
Richard took one look and said, “We could sell these bouquets to everybody!”
A few weeks later Richard was on his way to Connecticut for discovery day. A few months later he was back in Connecticut training with me at one of our corporate stores. By June, he was open for business.
Like many of our franchisees, the success of Richard’s Edible Arrangements franchise is a husband-wife cooperative supported by an amazing team.
Stacey, his wife of 32 years, manages the store.
“She is an AMAZING woman,” Richard said. “All I can say is that the luckiest day of my life was when I saw her for the first time. I’m very proud to be her husband.”
Then there is Hilario “Speedy” Gonzalez. “Our production ‘Superhero’ has been with us since day one,” Richard said. “He is incredibly fast! He can create seven daisy bouquets in five minutes and he is always saying, ‘No problem, piece of Kale!’”
There is Leslie Farley, who has been a part of the team for nine years. “She is our ‘go-to girl’ in the store,” Richard told me. “She can handle any situation with professionalism and grace.”
There is “driver extraordinaire” Lisa Snyder who has been with the store for six years and coordinates all aspects of deliveries from a normal day to Valentine’s Day. “I never have to lift a finger,” Richard said.
Then there are relative newcomers such as Alex Velarde and Mark Sexton.
Alex has been taking care of customer service for a year but, even more importantly, is engaged to Richard’s daughter, Stephanie.
Mark recently joined them as VP Sales of Marketing. “He has a great ‘go, go, go’ attitude and we expect him to be very successful increasing store sales,” Richard said.
Do you want to be a success? Then you can’t go wrong by following Richard’s example, whether it’s family or business.
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There are many reasons that Edible Arrangements is a success. First, of course is the fact that our products feature fresh fruit and chocolate, that is beautifully arranged. They are both delicious and healthy! The sight of them continues to WOW people, and is part of so many of life’s special occasions! After all, why not celebrate what’s good in life?
Just as important to our success, however, is the fact that our 1,200 stores are locally owned by franchisees — small business owners that are so passionate about what they do and know their local community better than any corporate office ever could!
Edible Arrangements’ local store owners come from all walks of life. Some have come out of retirement for a new challenge, others are “corporate refugees” looking for autonomy and control over their own destinies, and some are young upstarts with entrepreneurial dreams!
Meet Karli, who falls into that last category. Only 22 years old, she will WOW you! You see, Karli has just earned an engineering degree AND has just opened her fist Edible Arrangements store in Canada!
Just four years ago, in 2010, Karli first heard of Edible Arrangements when she received a call from a friend. The Edidble Arrangements store in Halifax was trying to find extra workers for its Valentine’s Day rush. At the time, she was a college student and was happy for opportunity to pick up some part-time work.
Karli says she was immediately WOWED by Edible Arrangements!
After Valentine’s Day she became an Edible Arrangements team member at the store. Of the experience of working at Edible Arrangements, Karli remembers, “I was happy when I went into work. I was happy when I left. I loved it!”
Fast forward a few years to March of 2014. Karli had just graduated from college with a degree in engineering. Still, though, there was just something special about Edible Arrangements that she loved. She learned that a nearby store was for sale and immediately knew what she wanted to do: become a local store owner and continue with the work that she loved!
A month later she told her parents of her decision and was thrilled when they told her they supported her. About one month ago, Kari became owner of the Edible Arrangements store in New Brunswick!
She says that Ryan, owner of the store where she was first introduced to Edible Arrangements four years earlier, has served as an invaluable mentor, saying, “He has been a wonderful supporter and so helpful to me!”
Karli says she still gets to do what she loves as a small business owner, but now she focuses on “bigger picture” issues such as ensuring enough supplies are ordered, that team members are top-notch and implementing local marketing efforts.
What does she like best about owning an Edible Arrangements franchise? Introducing product to new people!
“In Canada, everyone is not as familiar with Edible Arrangements as they are in the United States,” she said. “I love that I have the opportunity to introduce the product to people for the first time–and see the joy on their faces!”
Edible Arrangements is a successful company because of smart, passionate and hard working entrepreneurs like Karli!
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Valentine’s Day is the single biggest day of the year for Edible Arrangements and members of the news media are always fascinated to learn how our franchisees are able to deliver millions of pieces of fresh fruit nationwide in a single day.
A few days ago I was interviewed by The Street and a writer from Fortune. Friday afternoon, Edible Arrangements President Rob Price will appear on Fox Business to discuss why Edible Arrangements, in just over a decade, has become the gift of choice for so many loved ones.
You can CLICK HERE to view my interview on The Street.
And don’t forget that it’s not too late to place your order for one of our beautiful Valentine’s Day arrangements!
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