Improving Business Performance

Introduction

   Zoës Kitchen was established in 1995 as a single-family restaurant in Homewood, Alabama. John Cassismus (the owner, president and CEO of the company) had expanded his business to 16 locations in five states. The restaurants are known for its fresh ingredients, family recipes and homemade food with an extensive selection of menu options. John changed their architectural identity in 2002 which earned positive response from customers. By 2006, John operates all the restaurants by a management system that covered all aspect of the Zoës Kitchen. The fast-casual restaurants were growing in the mature restaurant industry. Existing large restaurant business and others were temping to enter to this attractive industry. Hence, John Cassismus now need to focus on strategic growth of the Zoës Kitchen to position itself for growth opportunity.

Introduction

 Analysis

This case study illustrates the challenges of improving business performance and gaining sustainable competitive advantages through an acquiring new strategy. The fast-casual restaurant began by high-end bakeries and cafes including Panera Bread and Corner Bakery in mid-1990s. This segment industry bridged the gap between the fast food and sit-down casual dining in quality, taste, price, and convenience for quick service. The industry grew by 13 percent in 2004 while overall the restaurant industry grew by only 4.5 present. And it is expected to see increases in units (locations), traffic, and sales continually.

As per the analysis, we can say that Ozek Kitchen could not catch this growth wave to secure market share. It started its first restaurant in 1995 and expended their business to only 16 locations while Paner Bread has 741 baker-cafes in 35 states by employing franchise system and Qdoba Mexican Grill will spread 1900 locations in more 30 states by collaboration