Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue II, 2013 | Page 22

M U L T I - B R A N D

he says. “That change caused sales to
more than double at that location.” But
he was far from done with conversions,
which is how he got into Domino’s in a
kind of two-for-one move. After acquiring a group of nine Sonics, he converted
a poor performer into a Domino’s and
turned it into a moneymaker.
The economy has been on a wild ride

Stick with the
company slogan:
“If it’s not
exceptional... it’s
unacceptable.”

since we last talked with Cutchall in 2009,
but he’s weathered the storm rather well.
Not only has he added brands and doubled his number of locations during the
last four years, he’s done it in territories
where restaurants have been popping up
like wildflowers.
“The landscape for restaurants has
been saturated in all of our markets,”

MANAGEMENT
Business philosophy: This has changed over the years, but I am learning
to do more due diligence. You need to know where the back door is before you
go in the front door. Hire the best people you can get and pay them as much as
you can. Share the wealth with a clear profit-sharing plan. Involve key people
in business decisions. Find brands that are “Best in Class” and stick with the
company slogan: “If it’s not exceptional... it’s unacceptable.”

ment, acquisitions, and marketing, but he really runs those restaurants as he
sees fit and has earned my trust in his decisions by producing good results year
after year. I have a new Famous Dave’s brand leader who has been a ball of
fire (in a good way). I continue to give her more decision-making power, and
her efforts are paying off. My Dallas and Utah area directors also have a little
more decision-making power as they continue to outperform year over year.

Management method or style: That has not changed much. I am very
hands-on and still want any significant decision run by me. I had an area manager say
once, “Okay, I get it, this is a dictatorship,
not a democracy,” with a smile, of course.
But he had made some really bad decisions
on his own and I came down on him hard.
If a manager is passionate about an idea or
plan I will often go along, even if I am not
sure it’s the best decision, just so they keep
that passion and are not afraid to think outside the box.

How close to operations are you? I am a quality control freak. It does
not matter how cool your place looks, or even
if it’s the fastest service every time; if the
product is not great, they will not come back. I
am more involved operationally in the concepts
where I only have one or two locations, like
Twin Peaks, Rock Bottom, and Burger Star. I
plan to have someone in an area position in
the next year, but for now it’s me. I love those
brands, they are fairly new to my lineup, and I
want to be involved day to day.

“I have been
fortunate to attract
and keep some of
the best people in
the business.”

Greatest challenge: I have been fortunate to attract and keep some of the best
people in the business, but maintaining that
as you grow fast becomes our biggest challenge. I have made some very bad hires over
the years… and some very good ones.
How do others describe you? I always
seem to have something new going on to
share with friends and family. They have
gotten to where nothing I do surprises them
anymore, and they just smile and shake their
heads. I think my employees find me involved, hands-on, and approachable...
and fair.
One thing I’m looking to do better: I plan to slow down my growth the
next few years and maybe spin off some concepts so I can focus more on what
I have. That will be hard for me. I love and have a passion for all our brands.
How I give my team room to innovate and experiment: I have
a sweat equity partner in my QSR division (Sonic, Domino’s), Tim Griggs, my
COO. He has been with me for 14 years and I trust his judgment. He is really
hands-on and works as hard or harder than anyone in my company; he takes
all the bullets for me in those concepts. I am involved in new store develop-

20

Multi-Unit Franchisee Is s ue II, 2013

What are the two most important
things you rely on from your franchisors? We really look for our franchisors to
give us all the tools we need: training, marketing, R&D, buying power, location studies, and
ongoing support. At the end of the day it is our
job to execute.

Have you changed your marketing
strategy in response to the economy? How? This is a little different in different concepts. Sonic and Domino’s have a huge
national advertising budget, so we have to do
little but some coupon drops. For my other brands that have smaller media budgets, we continue to improve our social media attacks. Social media is huge,
but it is even getting saturated. Everyone has a loyalty card. That’s great, but
you will need to stand out without abusing the guest or they will unsubscribe.
At some point people will be very picky about who gets their email address;
many already have. It is the perfect vehicle for retaining loyal guests, but you
still need other ways to attract new guests.
Fastest way into my doghouse? Withhold information, don’t tell me
the whole truth, don’t follow through on projects I give you. Hope I forget? I
do not forget.