Product Book
2060 The Decisions Before the Decisions
Last Updated: August 3, 2026There is a version of pre-opening that looks like work but isn’t. The operator who spends three months...
2055 From Perspective to Product The PreOpening Build
Last Updated: August 3, 2026Every section in Perspective asked you to examine how you see the business. Your market. Your competition. Your...
2015 The Product Is Never Finished
Last Updated: August 3, 2026Most operators think of their product as something they built. The menu they designed. The concept they launched....
2020 The Chain Has a Brand Team You Have a Dining Room
Last Updated: August 3, 2026Chains are in the business of restaurants. Independents are in the restaurant business. If you understand the difference...
2025 Products Can Be Imitated The Experience Cannot
Last Updated: August 3, 2026The chain can copy your menu. They have done it before and will do it again — faster,...
2030 The Variable the Corporate Playbook Is Trying to Eliminate Is Your Only Advantage
Last Updated: August 3, 2026When a corporate restaurant operator looks at your business, they see inefficiency. They see a kitchen manager who...
2035 What the Chain Buys That You Have to Build
Last Updated: August 3, 2026Choosing the relationship is the right decision. It is also not a free decision. The independent who understands...
2040 What You Have That the Chain Cant Buy
Last Updated: August 3, 2026The chain’s infrastructure is real. So is yours — and theirs cannot replicate it. Direct Guest relationship. No...
2045 Should You Franchise or Go Independent
Last Updated: August 3, 2026This question gets asked from two directions. The operator who has built something and is considering franchising it...
2050 The Restaurant Lifecycle
Last Updated: August 3, 2026The restaurant industry has a mythology problem. Ask anyone outside this business how many restaurants fail in their...