The American Flatbread - Case Study Example

American Flatbread Company American Flatbread is a homemade pizza company in Waitsfield and Middlebury, Vermont that specializes in producing fresh, home grown ingredients and that are grown by the American Flatbread employees in Vermont. Customers in Indiana can purchase American Flatbread foods from stores in Carmel, Dyer, Fort Wayne and Indianapolis. The Mission Statement of American Flatbread states that the company has set out to provide healthy, nutritious food that is full of flavor and provides joy and health to the customers and employees that all have a part of the American Flatbread experience.

They believe in taking care of the customer and the employee, and always looking out for the best interests of the people, not the business, while maintaining a healthy, fresh, and fun-filled environment to work and eat in. George Schenk is the founder of American Flatbread. He not only owns the business but takes a large role in the daily activities of running the company along with his management team. One of his beliefs is that it does not matter who thought of the best idea; the best idea will be the chosen course of action.

In the video, he mentioned that at times there are arguments between the management team, but that each person must swallow their pride for the betterment of the company. He also stated that by giving each employee a voice in the company, it leads to better ideas; and employees take an ownership role in doing the best job they can because they know their opinions matter. Schenk established the Medicine Wheel Project and Organic Food for Public Schools projects that has helped build his name and food philosophies nationwide.

He has also written many different articles stating his philosophies and beliefs to the culinary community as well as taking a strong stance in political activities in the state of Vermont. American Flatbread practices many different socially responsible activities that have made it well-renowned. The American Flatbread restaurants hold “Benefit Bakes”, which are fund raising events to raise money for social causes such as public health clinics and the preserving nature habitats. The company also serves food to medical patients, medical personnel and all of their families through the “Medicine Wheel” program.

Schenk has also demanded that members of the community that are facing tough times can come to American Flatbread and they will have flatbreads on the house. It is important for small businesses to intimately connect with their communities so that as one struggles, the other is there to help provide support. Schenk mentioned in the video that two crises occurred for American Flatbread where a flooding shut the company down for 7 days and an employee of the company was shot and killed on the premises.

He mentioned that without the outpouring of support from the local community, the company could have easily gone under. There are many benefits to franchising a business. To begin with, the franchisee is able to share in the core beliefs and practices that has made the original company a success; they are able to use a popular brand name; the parent company can ensure that its beliefs, such as saving farmland will continue to be spread; lastly, the parent company can spread its core values further to areas that may not be experiencing them, so it helps build up the entire company and promote key values.

As a franchisee of American Flatbread they require 3-5 years of business experience, 2-5 years of personal or partner restaurant experience, strong customer service skills, an interest in building a community-oriented business, real estate experience within the local market, a total commitment to American Flatbread, and a passion for wood-fired pizza, local agriculture and community development projects. The total initial investment for an American Flatbread franchise would be between $594,250 and $1,301,000.

I would be interested beginning a partnership company in video game production and sales. This is one of the strongest markets in the country that continues to grow. I would begin by opening a store location in California. A number of video game production companies are located on the West Coast, which can help develop strong relationships and financial connections. Our major competitors would be Game Stop and Game Crazy, which are franchise names. The target customers would be children, teenagers and young adults between the ages of 12-28.

Working capital would be any funds my partner(s) and I can personally invest on the project, including financial loans that we can receive from banks and private sources for initial investment. Strong marketing techniques such as advertising, benefit-enticing membership plans, and price-matching guarantees would be just a few ways to ensure success of the business.