Yesterday, we took a look at how Costco has separated itself from Sam’s Club. Today, let’s head out to the deli – in this case, Zingerman’s right here in Michigan.
There’s more to Zingerman’s than great corned beef on rye. You may have heard about this deli (and so much more). Located in Ann Arbor, co-founders Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig have recently invested millions into expanding their operations.
In a recent Crain’s Detroit article, they talked about their “vision of success that drives (their) business…not controlled by outside forces.” As a companion piece to yesterday’s post about Costco, Zingerman’s is another textbook case of how to run a business by being different.
Saginaw laid out the company’s philosophy about doing business during difficult times. While I often paraphrase and enhance content that I find in articles and interviews, in this case, Saginaw’s own words about “The Zingerman’s Way” are spot-on, and speak for themselves. Note the comments about health care and how they differ from what you’re hearing from other restaurant corporate CEOs, like Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter.
Here’s Saginaw’s philosophy (with my bolding at the end):
We operate with a long-term vision and we stick with it.
We invite everyone to come in to help us run the businesses and make decisions. And we give people all the tools that are at our disposal to do so.
To me, everyone that works here understands that they are personally responsible to help run the business. We share the information and the winnings. We teach rules of finance, keep score and share the winnings.
The other really important part is we go for greatness. We do not endeavor to provide great food and service toward a financial end.
We know we need to be profitable to continue to do the work we do, but our mission statement doesn’t say we need to be profitable.
If you get your head around such a thing as “enough,” then you can run at a responsible level of profit. If you can live with that then you can be extraordinary, do a lot of experimenting and have a continuous spirit of generosity.
If your drive is to create an enormous amount of profit, you won’t have those things.
We measure success not by what we create but what we contribute. We are no different than anybody else.
We have no patents, no access to something our competitors don’t. We hire from the same labor pool.
But we have a set of guiding principles we teach to our employees.
We have always offered health insurance and we have been profitable 29 out of 30 years. I don’t know anybody who ever made a decision based on tax policy. And as far as Affordable Care Act … from the best we can tell, what we are doing meets all the requirements. I welcome the change.
This will be the reality without exception: The trust of the people that work for you is the greatest thing a business owner can have.
This is not the easy way to run a business. But it’s also a pathway to success for companies that are surrounded by competitors that are operating with typical 2012 standards. As we discussed in yesterday’s post about Costco, great radio companies can aim higher, raise the bar, and win big at a time when other broadcasters are sending the message they don’t care.
By the way, there’s still time to take advantage of Zingerman’s amazing mail order goodies. Click here to peruse, and remember how Zingerman’s got to the dance in the first place.
Here’s to better broadcasting companies, motivated employees, and a newfound spirit of doing great things in 2013.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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He doesn’t know anybody who’s made a decision based on taxes? What a monster fib. I can assure you when he talks to his accountant they take actions to minimize his taxes.
This is one of those feel good stories that is disconnected from reality. Like when Buffett says he’s fine paying more taxes while he has a 1 billion tax fight with the IRS.
Hmmm…maybe. But you can’t argue with their success. Thanks, Michael.
Fred, thanks for posting this. You never become great seeking a huge profit. You may become rich but you won’t be great. Greatness comes from focus on the end user whether you call them customer, consumer or audience. It comes from passion and feeling AND LOVE. Greatness like art is timeless. Even though greatness is often times associated with a lot of remuneration, it has nothing to do with profit. It doesn’t matter whether the product is corned beef or discount groceries or a radio show, the guys who care the most about what they do usually make the best sandwich. Happy holidays.
Nick, I always love to hear your POV. And if you ever get to Michigan for a visit, lunch at Zingerman’s is on me. Happy holidays to you, too.
Glad you found these great business stories. CNBC and 60 minutes did a story on COSTCO this year – worth watching. Check out Chick-Fil-A leadercast on line. http://www.chick-fil-aleadercast.com
Chet, thanks for the comment. There’s a lot to be learned from what other businesses and brands are doing – good and bad.