Takeways from this episode:
“Heart-centered, food-centered” – David Dresler and his business partners open Tender Greens with the idea of providing an experience that provides care on multiple levels. Their focus was only on relationships built on hospitality outside the dollar and cents.
Go for it and don’t leave (10 year plan) – He probably got the best advice when David Dresler shared the idea of starting Tender Greens with one of his admirers. That advice was “don’t give up”. Its easy to distribute, yet the advice had a lasting impact on what would become of its 10-year growth plan.
To be in third place – The marketing plan of David Dresler and his partners revolves around making Tender Greens a “third place” for customers. It is a special place, outside a person’s home or work, where they feel more comfortable.
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Following the success of creating purpose-driven restaurant brand Tender Greens, David Dresler has found his own purpose – to help others do the same.
David Dresler co-founded Tender Greens in 2006 with Eric Oberholtzer and Matt Lyman. From the beginning they emphasized both margin and mission.
There is a saying that it takes 10 years to succeed overnight. Tender Greens did it in the 9th.
Ten year plan: How the founders of Tender Greens scale their heart-centric brand Written by David Dresler and Eric Oberholtzer to help other entrepreneurs and business owners find a clear destination along a purposeful path and help them achieve their goals.
In the Restaurant Influencer podcast, David Dressler shares his thoughtful approach to creating restaurant businesses and heart-centered brands.
The scalable business model created for Tender Greens is a perfect case study for any industry that needs to learn how to grow a sustainable business with a mission.
But first you have to give time. 10 years to be exact.
“When we incorporated our original business plan, we called our company a 10-year plan, TYP Restaurant Group,” David Dresler shared in the restaurant influencer podcast, calibbique media’s Shawn P. 7 hosted by Walchef “It was always a plan that we would be committed to working together for the first ten years, putting our guests first, putting business first and hitting it off the park.”
Now away from the day-to-day responsibilities of active restaurant management, Dressler is a renowned consultant and inspirational coach for the restaurant business. He understands the importance of purpose-driven entrepreneurship. This is the foundation on which Tender Greens was built. And that foundation has become the start of a $ 100 million brand with 30 stores.
David Dressler and Tender Greens
Early in his career, David Dresler climbed the stairs to a luxurious hotel space at a difficult pace. However, instead of seeing a bright future for himself, he says, “The more I climbed the career ladder and advanced, the more skeptical I became that I have a future.”
With that in mind, he and his two business partners devised a plan at the time and identified it as a “collective courage” to embark on the journey of opening their own restaurant business.
“We all worked in fine dining restaurants. We all worked for others, “said Dresler, referring to her inspiration to come out on her own. “The three of us wanted that exit strategy at the end of it all. We wanted to create something valuable and we knew it wouldn’t happen overnight. “
Write a ten year plan.
The founders of Tender Greens didn’t want to be a one-hit surprise. They did not want to open a single restaurant and rest on their laurels. There has always been an ambition to open more than one restaurant.
Initially the 10-year strategy was to ensure the right price for family and friends who were tapped to be the primary investors for their business.
“We didn’t think 3 years or 5 years was a comfortable model for us,” Dresler said of the partnership’s long-term business plan. “Ten seemed like a magical number that allowed us to achieve our goals.”
The Tender Greens team is responsible for this rapid growth due to the perseverance and purpose driven inspiration in the business.
Fellow Hospitality Veteran and author Danny Meyer recommends the Ten Year Plan book for valuable lessons on realizing a heartbreaking dream told through the story of Tender Greens start.
“Tender Greens has helped you quickly become a pioneer in the casual restaurant sector, and while their path to success has been inevitably hampered, these founders have won, thanks to their combined vision, humanity, humility to learn and generosity to teach,” wrote the CEO of the Ten Year Plan Book. About Union Square Hospitality Group.
The mainstay of the tender greens, according to David Dresler, is building a business that was “heart-centered, which was food-centered.” They wanted the experience to be valuable enough that the guests felt that it “nurtured both the stomach and the soul.”
“We have kept that promise. We’ve built 30 restaurants, $ 100 million in revenue, gone to bicostal, and built a company with a lasting, beautiful, heart-centered, purpose-driven culture. “
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