Evening all,
I promise not to write about my big break after today, except to let you know, how me & Mr Big are getting along. Monday which was D day...was moved to Tuesday....I'd bought all the bread ready to start but Mr Big isn't interested in those petty little issues..he's only interested in bar codes & margins.
He's not even that interested in the fabulous new packaging design that myself & my Creative Goddess Orla had created for him..but the new packaging does look amazing. On Tuesday morning I rolled up before 7 am in my little van with over 250 sandwiches, wraps & salads, made exclusively for his flagship store under the new brand identity I had created for him. He was in the store but left without saying hello....but he did call me half an hour later...there was a problem with the bar codes ...get it sorted... & quick...
Ya see, he does care.....
Mr Big is a a bit of an enigma..I'm trying to work him out..I like him & I suppose as long as he needs me, we'll be fine...so, yes we've finally bungee jumped off the edge of the cliff, we're both in free fall and both hoping to God that we make it out alive....
This is a big week for all my SPAR clients....the SPAR Troika are coming to town. SPAR is the biggest retail franchise in the world and there is a massive delegation of SPAR VIPs arriving in town on Monday, everybody is under pressure.
Consider the pressure in the Dept of Finance, before the arrival of the Troika and their symbolic walk form through town to The Central Bank a few years ago..and that will give you some sense of what's going on in my shops...
That's why Mr Big is so stressed and I really want him & his store to look great.
Other clients don't need my help, everything is under control. Mr Mmmmm, of the super posh SPAR in Dublin 2 (he has 4 shops in Dublin 2), had his gold front signage removed & re polished a few weeks ago, he's the SPAR godfather/son.....a Fergal Quinn protege....There will be no pictures of the SPAR Troika walking from his shop with a homeless person in the background....no sir. Mr Mmmmm will have all the homeless to Milano's where they will be munching posh pizza...after he has carefully worked out the margin....negative publicity minus cost of lunch divided by neg publicity......60% plus....no returns...
Oh yeah...
Shirley x
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Them's the breaks ...Part 4
Hi there,
Sorry I haven't been in touch for the past few weeks. I've been very busy & mentally exhausted, there is always so much to do and trying to get myself & Mr Bigs new working relationship off the ground has been quite a challenge. Mr Big takes some managing....After agreeing to do something really funky with the packaging...."it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission" he told me in response to my concern about tinkering with a well established logo...."don't you worry about that....." reality kicked in & suddenly my creative goddess & myself were left with a situation where he wanted to merge our fab funky colourful graphics with a long established traditional logo.......DISASTER. Frankly it looked awful and having started the ball rolling on this one..I had no doubt where the finger would point, when Mr Big realised the same.
Mr Big doesn't answer his phone, his mail box is always full....Today I needed to talk to him, get some decisions...A quick text.."Can you call me URGENTLY" worked a treat. As I said before at this stage we need each other....I need to learn as much as I can about mass market volume production....he needs his fridges full on Monday morning...with produce produced under his brand....Today, I found a solution to the packaging design, I will use his existing labelling with the traditional logo intact, but will have our graphics printed separately & apply them to the packaging....we will merge the old & the new....it will look great....
This is a risky venture for us @ The Delicious Food Co....all our sandwiches are made on gorgeous breads from artisan bakeries, Arun & Bretzel on the morning of delivery. But the reality is that the majority of people who buy prepacked sandwiches buy them in wedge boxes, and they buy thousands of them....this client sells up to 1,000 sandwiches a week, from Monday I'll be making them...I'll also be making all his salads. It's a different market, but our core philosophy of making all our food with love & care will continue...it's just that the bread will be....em...a tad more robust with the help a preservative or two. The margins are really tight on this one, so it's all about volume. It's really exciting and challenging...we're nearly there, tomorrow Mr Big will get samples of everything....as well as a letter outlining my terms & conditions of sale which he has agreed to, but which I don't think he heard...
This will be a match made in heaven or will all end in tears....We're still in our bungee jumping gear Mr Big & me...but there's no going back now...
on Monday we go to the edge of the cliff and we JUMP.....
Shirley
Sorry I haven't been in touch for the past few weeks. I've been very busy & mentally exhausted, there is always so much to do and trying to get myself & Mr Bigs new working relationship off the ground has been quite a challenge. Mr Big takes some managing....After agreeing to do something really funky with the packaging...."it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission" he told me in response to my concern about tinkering with a well established logo...."don't you worry about that....." reality kicked in & suddenly my creative goddess & myself were left with a situation where he wanted to merge our fab funky colourful graphics with a long established traditional logo.......DISASTER. Frankly it looked awful and having started the ball rolling on this one..I had no doubt where the finger would point, when Mr Big realised the same.
Mr Big doesn't answer his phone, his mail box is always full....Today I needed to talk to him, get some decisions...A quick text.."Can you call me URGENTLY" worked a treat. As I said before at this stage we need each other....I need to learn as much as I can about mass market volume production....he needs his fridges full on Monday morning...with produce produced under his brand....Today, I found a solution to the packaging design, I will use his existing labelling with the traditional logo intact, but will have our graphics printed separately & apply them to the packaging....we will merge the old & the new....it will look great....
This is a risky venture for us @ The Delicious Food Co....all our sandwiches are made on gorgeous breads from artisan bakeries, Arun & Bretzel on the morning of delivery. But the reality is that the majority of people who buy prepacked sandwiches buy them in wedge boxes, and they buy thousands of them....this client sells up to 1,000 sandwiches a week, from Monday I'll be making them...I'll also be making all his salads. It's a different market, but our core philosophy of making all our food with love & care will continue...it's just that the bread will be....em...a tad more robust with the help a preservative or two. The margins are really tight on this one, so it's all about volume. It's really exciting and challenging...we're nearly there, tomorrow Mr Big will get samples of everything....as well as a letter outlining my terms & conditions of sale which he has agreed to, but which I don't think he heard...
This will be a match made in heaven or will all end in tears....We're still in our bungee jumping gear Mr Big & me...but there's no going back now...
on Monday we go to the edge of the cliff and we JUMP.....
Shirley
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Them's the breaks.....Part 3
Evening all,
I suppose this is a bit of a sub blog...the blog within the main blog.....but it is important and we don't know where this might end up, so sit down beside me & let's see where we go.
OK, today I had another meeting with the client, Mr Big (that's what I've decided to call him)...to present the concepts for the packaging design
I'm not sure yet quite what to make of him....my gut instinct tells me he's okay....I think we are just sussing each other...but how we will get on long term.....
well it is too early to say, we both know that... Mr Big & me.
What Mr Big wants from me is to produce all his salads & sandwiches...agree a decent margin (for him), roll up & stock the fridges...what I am getting are lots of promises from him about volume, dollar signs, more big contracts...
When I suggested a packaging design that would be exclusive to his empire, which I would organise , Mr Big was hooked because......that, as the Spice Girls once sang...
that was, what he really, really wanted.
Inside.....Mr Big wants much more than just sandwiches & salads in generic branded packaging.
Mr Big, has big ideas, he has massive footfall, he also has, not just money to invest, but that generous spirit that means, he doesn't expect me to take the fall if it doesn't work out....not for the first month, at least.....
Yes, myself ( aka The Delicious Food Co) & Mr Big are standing at the top of the cliff all decked out in our bungee jumping gear and we are ready to jump.
Watch this space.....
Shirley x
I suppose this is a bit of a sub blog...the blog within the main blog.....but it is important and we don't know where this might end up, so sit down beside me & let's see where we go.
OK, today I had another meeting with the client, Mr Big (that's what I've decided to call him)...to present the concepts for the packaging design
I'm not sure yet quite what to make of him....my gut instinct tells me he's okay....I think we are just sussing each other...but how we will get on long term.....
well it is too early to say, we both know that... Mr Big & me.
What Mr Big wants from me is to produce all his salads & sandwiches...agree a decent margin (for him), roll up & stock the fridges...what I am getting are lots of promises from him about volume, dollar signs, more big contracts...
When I suggested a packaging design that would be exclusive to his empire, which I would organise , Mr Big was hooked because......that, as the Spice Girls once sang...
that was, what he really, really wanted.
Inside.....Mr Big wants much more than just sandwiches & salads in generic branded packaging.
Mr Big, has big ideas, he has massive footfall, he also has, not just money to invest, but that generous spirit that means, he doesn't expect me to take the fall if it doesn't work out....not for the first month, at least.....
Yes, myself ( aka The Delicious Food Co) & Mr Big are standing at the top of the cliff all decked out in our bungee jumping gear and we are ready to jump.
Watch this space.....
Shirley x
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Them's the breaks.....Part 2
Hello again,
After posting my blog on lucky breaks I started getting very nervous.What if it doesn't happen....what if the client changed his mind..I'm a firm believer that "one in the hand is worth two in the bush" and this one was very much still in the bush. A few unanswered voice messages & I started to feel very jittery....had he changed his mind...had a change of heart ...had he brought me to the top of the cliff to show me the view only to push me off....(that's happened to me before & it wasn't pretty....) I need this bit of business.....I need the challenge....
I'll text him I thought....be assertive...assumptive....use the word "when we start" rather than "if you still want to to ahead"...... "when" is the language of winners...".if" is not ...The good news is that it looks like this is going ahead....we've had a meeting...he's been emailing me the stuff I asked from him....he's tackled a potential stumbling block head on.....
I've met my designer, Creative Goddess, Orla Brosnan & we're putting together some concepts for the packaging....
The client is getting very excited....and therein I've just learned something very important.....
at this stage, the client needs me as much as I need him...he's counting on me...as much as I am counting on him.... We are at the top of the cliff , looking at the view side by side....there has been a shift in the balance of power...
I might well just have the edge.....
Fingers crossed !
Shirley x
After posting my blog on lucky breaks I started getting very nervous.What if it doesn't happen....what if the client changed his mind..I'm a firm believer that "one in the hand is worth two in the bush" and this one was very much still in the bush. A few unanswered voice messages & I started to feel very jittery....had he changed his mind...had a change of heart ...had he brought me to the top of the cliff to show me the view only to push me off....(that's happened to me before & it wasn't pretty....) I need this bit of business.....I need the challenge....
I'll text him I thought....be assertive...assumptive....use the word "when we start" rather than "if you still want to to ahead"...... "when" is the language of winners...".if" is not ...The good news is that it looks like this is going ahead....we've had a meeting...he's been emailing me the stuff I asked from him....he's tackled a potential stumbling block head on.....
I've met my designer, Creative Goddess, Orla Brosnan & we're putting together some concepts for the packaging....
The client is getting very excited....and therein I've just learned something very important.....
at this stage, the client needs me as much as I need him...he's counting on me...as much as I am counting on him.... We are at the top of the cliff , looking at the view side by side....there has been a shift in the balance of power...
I might well just have the edge.....
Fingers crossed !
Shirley x
Monday, April 15, 2013
Moving Out....
Evening all,
I'm moving out.....actually it's probably more correct to say I'm moving in....
Since September 2008 I've been renting an office, just around the corner from the kitchen...my own private little oasis of heaven..... somewhere that is just mine.....somewhere to escape to.... my bolt hole..my potting shed.....
It's also where I have done a phenomenal amount work, accounts, sales, quality audits and of course 100,000's of labels. It's where I have received great news & bad news, in relation to business accounts won & lost...Where I have order docket books with over 12,000 invoices all recorded in neat monthly sales reports by me...
It's also where I keep my personal diary of the highs & lows of my life as a person rather than as a food producer... the contents of which would make quite a movie.....
But things are changing, my lovely landlady is planning change & needs my office & I have no option but to surrender my bolt hole and rather than look for another office, I've decided to move back home.....Strangely I am really excited about this.....I've just realised how much I've missed being at home....I'm often in my little van from 6.30am gone before anybody gets up, home after Mr Delicious has cooked dinner.
I miss home....
My office will be in the tiny utility room, which will be made over like a centre spread in Elle Deco.
It will be the control centre of The Delicious Food Co's planned expansion.....in between closing deals, I'll go jogging down the canal, I'll go for coffee with my neighbourhood friends... I'll take the dog for walks.....I'll snack on raw carrots & eat nuts...I'll probably take up yoga...the frantic pace that I lived my life for the past number of years will stop
I will never again wonder at 5.30am, what the hell am I going to wear today..
I'll be one of those super organised business women I've read about in magazines....I'll be a new me, a different me, a more relaxed me...
The problem is.....where the hell will I hide my diary....
Shirley x
I'm moving out.....actually it's probably more correct to say I'm moving in....
Since September 2008 I've been renting an office, just around the corner from the kitchen...my own private little oasis of heaven..... somewhere that is just mine.....somewhere to escape to.... my bolt hole..my potting shed.....
It's also where I have done a phenomenal amount work, accounts, sales, quality audits and of course 100,000's of labels. It's where I have received great news & bad news, in relation to business accounts won & lost...Where I have order docket books with over 12,000 invoices all recorded in neat monthly sales reports by me...
It's also where I keep my personal diary of the highs & lows of my life as a person rather than as a food producer... the contents of which would make quite a movie.....
But things are changing, my lovely landlady is planning change & needs my office & I have no option but to surrender my bolt hole and rather than look for another office, I've decided to move back home.....Strangely I am really excited about this.....I've just realised how much I've missed being at home....I'm often in my little van from 6.30am gone before anybody gets up, home after Mr Delicious has cooked dinner.
I miss home....
My office will be in the tiny utility room, which will be made over like a centre spread in Elle Deco.
It will be the control centre of The Delicious Food Co's planned expansion.....in between closing deals, I'll go jogging down the canal, I'll go for coffee with my neighbourhood friends... I'll take the dog for walks.....I'll snack on raw carrots & eat nuts...I'll probably take up yoga...the frantic pace that I lived my life for the past number of years will stop
I will never again wonder at 5.30am, what the hell am I going to wear today..
I'll be one of those super organised business women I've read about in magazines....I'll be a new me, a different me, a more relaxed me...
The problem is.....where the hell will I hide my diary....
Shirley x
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Them's the breaks....Part 1
Hello again,
If you read my last blog "A pub, A Thesaraus etc..." apologies, that was a draft that I posted, so I hadn't really lost my marbles with a rambling blog about me , President Obama & my beloved dad..I was just trying out some ideas never meant for public view...
A valuable lesson in blogging learnt.
Anyway back to the breaks ...which can turn a business round.
Every business needs a lucky break, a phone call, a chance meaning, being in the right place at the right time. Lucky breaks tend to come from your own hard work.... following a lead that another person might have ignored....That "we make our own luck" is probably a truism in life..it's just that sometimes it seems that no matter how many doors we knock on that lucky break seems very elusive.
I've had a lot of lucky breaks at The Delicious Food Co, but in fairness the genesis of the lucky break came from ourselves. On Friday, I had a meeting with a potential client that might well be a lucky break of epic porprtions. The client wants to upgrade their whole food offering and sees my love & passion for food as a way to do that.They have worked with me before, they like my style & my vision and are willing to invest to get it right. It's a huge challenge, we are going to work as partners, develop things slowly.... the client speaks my language... albeit with a very different accent.
He has been very clear...we will work together, but I will have to deliver in terms of sales at his end. He will give me a much help as I need, but I am the expert and the expectation will be high...
but....
he says if it doesn't work out like any relationship, I'll find, my phone stops ringing, texts will go unanswered & I will gradually realise I am being dumped
This could be the challenge of my career and I am so ready for it..
Wish me luck....
Shirley x
If you read my last blog "A pub, A Thesaraus etc..." apologies, that was a draft that I posted, so I hadn't really lost my marbles with a rambling blog about me , President Obama & my beloved dad..I was just trying out some ideas never meant for public view...
A valuable lesson in blogging learnt.
Anyway back to the breaks ...which can turn a business round.
Every business needs a lucky break, a phone call, a chance meaning, being in the right place at the right time. Lucky breaks tend to come from your own hard work.... following a lead that another person might have ignored....That "we make our own luck" is probably a truism in life..it's just that sometimes it seems that no matter how many doors we knock on that lucky break seems very elusive.
I've had a lot of lucky breaks at The Delicious Food Co, but in fairness the genesis of the lucky break came from ourselves. On Friday, I had a meeting with a potential client that might well be a lucky break of epic porprtions. The client wants to upgrade their whole food offering and sees my love & passion for food as a way to do that.They have worked with me before, they like my style & my vision and are willing to invest to get it right. It's a huge challenge, we are going to work as partners, develop things slowly.... the client speaks my language... albeit with a very different accent.
He has been very clear...we will work together, but I will have to deliver in terms of sales at his end. He will give me a much help as I need, but I am the expert and the expectation will be high...
but....
he says if it doesn't work out like any relationship, I'll find, my phone stops ringing, texts will go unanswered & I will gradually realise I am being dumped
This could be the challenge of my career and I am so ready for it..
Wish me luck....
Shirley x
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
The Bridal Suite without Mr Delicious
Hello again,
Oh.. it's been busy few days..I spent Monday & Tuesday @ Going for Growth National Forum...in beautiful Barbertown Castle, where us girls gathered en masse to network & learn more about being Entrepreneurs..it's a great mentoring system whereby successful female entrepreneurs mentor a group for 6 months. Now, I'm not a "let's burn our bras" kinda girl, but this is great. Our mentor, the wonderful Miriam Byrne from City Analysts, told us to leave our life outside business at the door & engage as a business people for the 6 months duration of the process.
Miriam is my kind of "sistas doing for themselves" kind of girl...no bull.
If you've been following my blog...you will have a sense of the drama of my food producer life....the highs & lows...the agony & the ecstasy , the sleepless nights of worry, so it's with great joy that I can tell you that in the surround of so much positive energy & talent & the comfort of my four poster bed I had my best nights sleep in months, alone.
Bon soir
Shirley x
Oh.. it's been busy few days..I spent Monday & Tuesday @ Going for Growth National Forum...in beautiful Barbertown Castle, where us girls gathered en masse to network & learn more about being Entrepreneurs..it's a great mentoring system whereby successful female entrepreneurs mentor a group for 6 months. Now, I'm not a "let's burn our bras" kinda girl, but this is great. Our mentor, the wonderful Miriam Byrne from City Analysts, told us to leave our life outside business at the door & engage as a business people for the 6 months duration of the process.
Miriam is my kind of "sistas doing for themselves" kind of girl...no bull.
If you've been following my blog...you will have a sense of the drama of my food producer life....the highs & lows...the agony & the ecstasy , the sleepless nights of worry, so it's with great joy that I can tell you that in the surround of so much positive energy & talent & the comfort of my four poster bed I had my best nights sleep in months, alone.
Bon soir
Shirley x
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