Mike Hohnen

Coaching for personal growth, change and development

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Wild Noodles

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The idea for the Wild Noodles restaurants was developed a couple of years ago by Eddie Matney, a local celebrity chef and full-service restaurant owner in Phoenix, who infuses his pasta with flavors, forgoing the use of cold noodles in boiling water.

“He and I hooked up about a year ago and decided to package it for a franchise rollout,” says Wild Noodles President George Krotonsky.

Only three Wild Noodles are currently open, but six more will launch this month. The first one opened about two-and-a-half years ago, and the most recent location – and the first franchise – opened in Arizona about three weeks ago. [Read more…] about Wild Noodles

God came to me and said, 'Anthony, you will make 10-yuan pizzas.

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Hello Pizza. “I had a vision,” says Anthony LeCorre, as quoted by Leslie Chang in The Wall Street Journal. “God came to me and said, ‘Anthony, you will make 10-yuan pizzas.” And so he did, and he looks like his fledgling, Shanghai-based, three-restaurant chain, called Hello Pizza, is shaking up China’s fast-food market in a way that the multinationals, with their premium prices and hefty advertising budgets, may not understand. Conventional wisdom had it that “the high-end market” was the place to be in China … “But many found themselves competing against each other in a market that was in fact tinier than advertised.” Anthony, who is French, made that mistake at first, too — opening and closing two restaurants where his pizzas were priced at $2.50 and $5.00. Problem was, he was up against a bunch of others selling pizzas for at same prices.

“God” appeared, Anthony says, after reading up on McDonald’s, where, of course, success was had by “cutting prices while offering consistent quality and service.” So Anthony set up a new, factory-like operation in Shanghai: [Read more…] about God came to me and said, 'Anthony, you will make 10-yuan pizzas.

Snack Times, They are a Changing

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Considering the spending power of children and teens, it should come as no surprise that major manufacturers are focusing their sights on this valuable demographic. With young people registering 4.4 eating occasions per day, snack makers have ample opportunities to reach them.

Though often lumped together as a single demographic, the eating habits of children 12 and older differ significantly from their younger peers, according to “U.S. Kids’ and Teens’ Eating Habits,” a report by Mintel International Group (Chicago).

The 12-14 group demonstrates eating patterns that are more “teen-like” (i.e., less fruit, more chips and candy, eating more with friends). Those 11 and younger, however, primarily are influenced by what their parents want them to eat. As a result, the under-12 demographic consumes a wider range of foods. While they still eat sweets and salty snacks, they also have a much greater incidence of healthful food consumption [Read more…] about Snack Times, They are a Changing

HSMAI Survey of 7,000 Members Reveals the 'Top 10 Issues of Concern' Facing Sales and Marketing Executives / February 2004

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HSMAI Survey of 7,000 Members Reveals the
“Top 10 Issues of Concern Facing Sales
and Marketing Executives in 2004

MCLEAN, VA (Feb. 2, 2004) – While the economic outlook is generally improving in the marketplace, the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) just-released membership survey of its 7,000 members revealed the “Top 10 Issues of Concern facing sales and marketing executives and staff with the number one issue being the current travel environment and the economy.

[Read more…] about HSMAI Survey of 7,000 Members Reveals the 'Top 10 Issues of Concern' Facing Sales and Marketing Executives / February 2004

Hoteliers are working in a new reality

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Hoteliers are working in a new reality. The theme for 2004 is not about recovery; it is about managing fundamental changes in the travel market. When or even whether economies recover will not erase what the traveling public has learned since September 11, 2001: everything is negotiable; they can book at the last minute; and hoteliers still need their business badly enough to over-compete with value-added services and personalized attention. Put simply, the challenges of the last three years are not going away.

[Read more…] about Hoteliers are working in a new reality

BW Online | February 9, 2004 | Wireless Finds a Welcome in Hospitality

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It’s not quite Star Trek, where food can be made to materialize just by talking into a machine. But restaurant guests at a new Holiday Inn in Duluth, Ga., can now place their meal orders electronically. The so-called Emenu — really a tablet PC connected wirelessly to a computer in the hotel — provides photos and nutritional info on menu items. Customers can tally the calories, carbs, and price of their meals before they order, then zap the request to the kitchen. The Emenu also translates that data into Spanish and into euros. [Read more…] about BW Online | February 9, 2004 | Wireless Finds a Welcome in Hospitality

Great Combos

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Restaurants have introduced many a great combo. Sweet and sour. Coke and fries. But roast turkey and cheeseburgers? Pizza and fried chicken?

Fuddruckers became the latest to combine two concepts, popping up in Koo Koo Roo in the past month. Late last year the burger specialist bought the chicken purveyor, which operates 18 fast-casual spots throughout Southern California, and now at least six of the stores sell both burgers and chicken. The move reflects a growing movement in the restaurant business as chains strive to fill out menus and grab more dollars. Those that successfully combine concepts bring in new customers and add sales, leading restaurant experts to expect the trend to continue. [Read more…] about Great Combos

Customer satisfaction online

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https://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/local/sfl-sbwebstay08feb08,0,3531199.story

Once upon a time, a good or bad hotel experience might be passed along to a small group of friends. Now it gets posted via the World Wide Web on sites such as tripadvisor.com or fodors.com. For consumers, the sites are a back channel way to check up on the advertising and marketing claims put out by hotel chains.

For hotels, the benefits are more mixed. Comments like “God awful” and “Run away as fast as you can” can sour travelers and may not be objective, even as “Terrific” and “Great view and beach” could lead to bookings.

But hotel executives say they do monitor the sites, in part to uncover problems glossed over on guest comment cards.