Growth Articles

We’re in tough economic times. Consumer confidence is down and food costs are up. Everybody is looking to squeeze more money out of their operation. Most look to catering or adding a daypart. According to the FBI, Amado “Mayo” Pardo, a restaurant owner in Austin, Texas, ran a heroin ring.

The formidable Duane Reade drugstore chain is stepping up its challenge to restaurants by including a made-to-order salad station in its latest store. The Upmarket Chop Salad Bar is similar to Chop’t, SweetGreen, Fresh, and the other concepts where convenience-driven customers move down a line, specifying what ingredients to spoon into a bowl of salad that’s finally tossed or chopped and packaged for takeout.

There is a lot known about the new health care law, but there are still some rules left to be sorted out. Regardless, there is enough known that many in the industry are concerned. Here's how some of your peers are responding to reforms: Jeremy Merrin, Havana Central: Merrin is the owner of Havana Central’s three restaurants in New York City, which employ a total of 350 people. He plans to open a fourth on Long Island in the coming months.

If there is a "Mr. Johnny Rockets" within the Johnny Rockets' system, it's got to be Lloyd Sugarman. A co-founder turned independent franchisee—one of the first to sign on when the 25-year-old chain began franchising—Sugarman lives and breathes the brand and has been one of its most innovative and energetic agents of change.

In easy-to-swallow decision-tree form How to calculate full-time employees You don’t have to insure your part-time workers—defined as less than 30 hours a week—but you do have to include them in calculating your number of full-time workers. Here’s how: Take your total part-time hours in a month and divide by 120. Then add those “full-time equivalent employees” to your actual number of full-time employees.