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Фишка Суши часть 1
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Фишка Суши часть 1

Introduction to the Project and Role

Overview of Current Role

  • The speaker introduces themselves as the founder of the project, indicating they are involved in all aspects of it.

Focus Areas

  • The primary focus is on partner development, ensuring partners can earn and manage their businesses effectively.
  • Emphasis is placed on launching new partners rather than just attracting them.

Expansion into New Markets

Entry into Revda

  • The company is expanding into Revda, near Yekaterinburg, with top partners opening locations there.

Competitive Dynamics

  • A competitor expressed concern over the company's entry into Revda, suggesting a strong competitive atmosphere.
  • The competitor offered to sell their business but was declined by the speaker's partner.

Market Competition Insights

Healthy Competition

  • The speaker believes that healthy competition fosters a robust market environment.

Challenges Faced

  • There were challenges in negotiating with potential locations due to existing competitors' reluctance to collaborate.

Partner Success Stories

Performance Metrics

  • One franchisee reported earning one million per month from two locations after switching from a competitor that struggled for years.

Business Strategy

  • The goal is to empower partners to be independent and successful rather than focusing solely on rapid expansion.

Selection Process for Partners

Rigorous Approval Criteria

  • Only about 20% of applicants are approved as potential partners; this selective process ensures quality over quantity.

Long-term Relationships

  • Some applicants return after initial rejection, indicating ongoing interest in partnership opportunities.

Lessons Learned from Past Experiences

Caution with Franchise Sales

  • Previous experiences taught the importance of being cautious when selling franchises, especially in less promising markets like Lesosibirsk.

Challenges in Partner Management and Business Operations

Initial Partner Experience

  • A new partner was given a chance despite lacking business experience, leading to expectations that were ultimately unmet.
  • The second case involved partners from Manchenhorsk who struggled with communication due to poor Russian language skills, complicating operations.

Communication Barriers

  • Despite ongoing efforts to communicate and support the partners, results have been disappointing.
  • Initial success was followed by a decline in revenue; marketing insights revealed that the partners were not replenishing their budget.

Operational Issues

  • Multiple explanations were needed for basic operational tasks, indicating a significant gap in understanding business processes among partners.
  • An absurd situation arose where couriers lacked change for cash transactions, leading to order cancellations and customer dissatisfaction.

Cultural Differences

  • The lack of initiative from couriers highlighted cultural differences in business practices; expectations for problem-solving varied significantly.
  • There is hope for improvement either through better partner performance or finding new partnerships due to the potential profitability of the city.

Performance Metrics and Evaluation

  • The main goal is to cultivate strong independent partners; regular evaluations are conducted every Tuesday to assess performance against set plans.
  • Key metrics include revenue targets and partner agreement on operational plans; adjustments are made based on partner feedback.

Addressing Underperformance

  • Problematic cities are identified quickly, with tailored strategies implemented to boost performance; currently three cities are underperforming.
  • Despite challenges, there is confidence that any city can be profitable with the right approach and product offering.

Challenges and Successes in Business Partnerships

The Importance of Partner Engagement

  • Discusses the challenges faced when partners are not fully engaged or willing to expand their operations, emphasizing that growth is contingent on partner commitment.

Case Study: Petrozavodsk Experience

  • Shares a specific example from Petrozavodsk where a franchisee struggled due to personal financial issues affecting business decisions, leading to eventual closure.
  • Highlights how the franchisee's lack of proper tax management resulted in significant unexpected liabilities, showcasing the importance of financial oversight.

Financial Management and Operational Challenges

  • Describes the operational difficulties faced by a partner who could have been profitable but failed due to mismanagement of funds and prioritizing payments to others over her own business needs.
  • Notes that after the original partner sold the business, the new owner quickly turned a profit, indicating potential for success if managed correctly.

Partner Dynamics and Market Conditions

  • Emphasizes that both market conditions and partner capabilities play crucial roles in determining business success; strong partners can thrive even in challenging markets.

Monitoring Performance Metrics

  • Stresses the necessity of monitoring key performance indicators such as revenue and customer satisfaction rates (negative feedback percentage), which should ideally remain below 2%.
  • Discusses how high complaint rates (up to 17%) trigger investigations into service quality issues, underscoring proactive management strategies for maintaining standards.

Quality Control and Partner Management in Food Delivery

Addressing Quality Complaints

  • The discussion begins with the importance of monitoring food quality complaints, particularly focusing on undercooked or overcooked items. Immediate communication with partners is initiated when such issues arise.
  • It is noted that negative feedback regarding quality is rare, typically accounting for only 13-17% of complaints, while most issues stem from delivery delays.

Delivery Performance Metrics

  • The speaker emphasizes the need to present clear statistics to partners about delivery performance, illustrating that every eighth order may be delayed in certain cities.
  • By providing concrete data on delays (e.g., "every third order"), partners can better understand their performance metrics compared to vague percentages.

Cost Control and Discount Management

  • Weekly assessments are conducted to monitor partner costs and discount rates, ensuring that marketing teams do not excessively lower prices without justification.
  • Regular evaluations of call center metrics are performed, including average response times and missed call rates, which have become second nature for the team.

Financial Reporting and Analysis

  • Partners are required by contract to submit profit and loss reports by the fifth of each month. This allows for a thorough review of financial health and operational efficiency.
  • Discussions often involve analyzing cost structures with partners, identifying areas where expenses can be reduced through better supplier management.

Supplier Relationships and Product Consistency

  • Partners are encouraged to engage multiple suppliers for competitive pricing on ingredients like salmon or trout. This practice ensures they secure the best deals available.
  • Specific product standards are maintained across all locations; deviations from approved brands (e.g., mayonnaise or caviar types) are closely monitored to ensure consistency in quality.

Roadmap for Business Development

  • A roadmap exists outlining expected revenue milestones for partners within specific timeframes post-launch. Typically, a partner should aim to break even within six to eight months after opening.

Investment and Expansion Strategy

Initial Investment Recovery

  • The partner's initial investment is expected to be fully recovered within 12 months, after which they can prepare to open a second location.

Revenue Threshold for Expansion

  • The contract stipulates that upon reaching a revenue threshold of approximately 1.8 million, the partner has six months to open a second location in the same city.

Goal of Partner Success

  • The overarching goal is for each partner to become a millionaire, with an emphasis on opening multiple locations (ideally two or three) rather than just one.

Tax Considerations and Profit Margins

  • Once partners reach three locations, discussions shift towards expanding to ten locations due to tax implications; maintaining only three becomes less profitable due to VAT consumption.

Marketing Metrics for Launch Success

  • There are specific marketing metrics used during the launch phase, including active audience size on social media platforms like VKontakte and required subscription numbers for effective outreach.

Operational Challenges and Cost Management

Call Center Economics

  • The call center operates at a loss despite efforts over two years; it incurs monthly losses of around 300-400 thousand but is maintained for its role in managing customer complaints and statistics.

Importance of Customer Retention

  • The call center helps retain customers by controlling complaints through a unified contact number, preventing partners from circumventing established protocols.

Future Projections for Call Center Profitability

  • There is an expectation that profitability will improve once the network expands to 25 locations, as previously suggested by advisors.

Business Model Insights

Revenue Challenges and Partner Relationships

  • The speaker discusses the challenges faced when expanding to 25 and then 30 locations without generating profit, leading to suspicions of being misled by partners.
  • They explain the structure of their call center operations, which includes two departments: one for order processing and another for customer inquiries, emphasizing efficiency metrics like call duration.
  • Partners pay a percentage of revenue generated from orders processed through the call center, highlighting a shift in their business model towards performance-based compensation.
  • The discussion reveals that partners also pay a commission on orders from various platforms (e.g., Yandex), indicating multiple revenue streams tied to partner performance.
  • Despite receiving royalties as a management company, they acknowledge being in the red due to operational costs associated with handling orders.

Cost Structure and Profitability

  • The average commission paid for order processing is noted at 1.5%, while royalties are around 5%, illustrating the financial dynamics between service fees and income.
  • A question arises about product sourcing; it’s clarified that quality is prioritized over partnerships or kickbacks, focusing on taste rather than financial incentives.
  • The speaker mentions partnerships with suppliers but insists on fair pricing without accepting kickbacks, aiming for mutual profitability instead of short-term gains.
  • They express a long-term vision where partner success leads to more openings and investments in marketing, fostering competitive advantages against rivals.

Marketing Strategies

  • Promotions are discussed as essential strategies; offering attractive sets or discounts can draw customers effectively compared to standard price reductions.
  • The importance of creating appealing offers is emphasized; providing value through bundled products or significant discounts can enhance customer perception and sales volume.
  • There’s skepticism about discounting practices in the industry; many promotions involve inflated prices masked by temporary markdowns, which they aim to avoid in their strategy.
  • A specific promotional item called "Hype" is introduced as part of their marketing approach—offering high-value items at perceived discounts encourages customer engagement.

IT Solutions in Delivery: A Journey

Transition to IT Solutions

  • The discussion shifts towards exploring the journey of implementing IT solutions in delivery, with a focus on past experiences and challenges faced.
  • The initial solution was based on a platform called "brain," which led to the development of their own website using Bitrix.

Challenges with Previous Platforms

  • Previous platforms were described as unreliable; they functioned until modifications were needed, leading to frequent breakdowns during updates like price changes or photo uploads.
  • Mainbrain was identified as a more stable application compared to others tested, but it still had limitations that prompted further exploration for better solutions.

Evaluation of Alternatives

  • After testing numerous services, only two solutions—Mainbrain and Starter—were deemed suitable. Custom development was considered but financially unfeasible at the time.
  • The speaker highlights the high costs associated with developing their own solution, estimating around 15 million rubles for what they envisioned.

Reasons for Switching to Starter

  • Mainbrain's cost structure was initially favorable (23,000 rubles), but concerns arose about future scalability and potential hidden costs for additional features.
  • Starter presented itself as a comprehensive solution promising stability and regular updates, which appealed to the speaker despite acknowledging higher future costs.

Insights on Market Dynamics

  • The need for continuous innovation is emphasized; relying solely on personal ideas can be limiting compared to leveraging collective insights from multiple companies using Starter.
  • The speaker notes that smaller players often test new solutions before broader implementation, highlighting an advantage in collaborative environments over solitary efforts.

Implementation Challenges

  • There were significant delays in launching the new site; communication issues arose when partners expected timely updates that did not materialize.
  • This situation illustrates the complexities involved in transitioning between platforms and managing stakeholder expectations throughout the process.

Discussion on IT Management and Company Structure

The Decision to Launch Despite Errors

  • The speaker reflects on a situation where they were advised to delay a launch due to minor errors, but they believed it was better to proceed and fix issues in real-time.
  • They emphasize that having a live product would lead to quicker resolutions as partners would be more motivated to address problems when they arise.

Absence of an IT Director

  • The speaker confirms that their company does not have an IT director, indicating that they personally handle all mainframe-related queries.
  • They question the necessity of an IT director for companies with fewer than 100 locations, suggesting such roles may exist merely to support the position rather than contribute significantly to profitability.

Role Clarity and Responsibilities

  • The speaker argues that directors should focus on specific functions rather than overarching visions, which should be the responsibility of leadership.
  • They highlight the complexity of marketing as a reason for hiring a dedicated marketer while downplaying the need for constant oversight in IT management.

Challenges with Technical Support

  • The discussion shifts towards technical support, noting that existing support structures are often inadequate and can leave unresolved tickets.
  • There is criticism regarding the quality of tech support across various companies, including their own, pointing out inefficiencies in ticket resolution processes.

Future Improvements and Expectations

  • Plans are mentioned for integrating ticket management into CRM systems for better visibility and tracking of issues.
  • The speaker expresses frustration over customer service limitations, particularly regarding order processing via phone calls instead of directing customers online.

Future Prospects and Challenges in Business Operations

Long-term Commitment to Current Solutions

  • The speaker expresses confidence in the long-term viability of their current planning strategy, indicating a commitment of at least 3-5 years with their existing developer, Starter. They emphasize that switching developers is costly and disruptive.
  • A past experience with changing the main system led to significant operational challenges, including issues with SMS communications and authorization via Telegram. This reinforces the importance of stability in their tech solutions.
  • Transitioning to a new solution would result in losing client databases, statistics, and marketing capabilities like newsletters, which are seen as critical assets for business continuity. The speaker believes such losses would be detrimental.

Issues with Promo Codes in Call Center Operations

  • A question arises regarding the handling of promo codes within the call center operations, highlighting a disconnect between promotional strategies and operational execution. The current system does not allow operators to easily apply promo codes during customer interactions.
  • There are concerns about tracking whether customers have used promo codes effectively if they are only noted in comments on orders; this could lead to confusion over multiple uses of the same code by different customers. This complexity complicates reporting for partners who rely on clear data insights.

Limitations of Current Tools

  • The speaker mentions dissatisfaction with using "Cart," stating it has performance issues that disrupt operations significantly when activated; this has led them to avoid its use despite potential benefits. They note a previous negative experience as a reason for this decision.
  • Looking ahead, there is an intention to implement an "Aika Franchise" model where each partner can customize their offerings independently; however, integration challenges remain since the call center does not function well within Aika's framework currently being utilized by partners. This indicates ongoing development needs for better alignment between tools and operational requirements.