| How’s
the restaurant industry doing these days? What’s its
greatest challenge?
It’s still doing well, we're still getting crowds.
There’s still a need for it.The restaurant industry
does have a seasonality like other businesses. Gerry’s
Grill has 17 branches. Growth depends on the area
you are in. According to our survey, restaurants
are location-driven. People who eat in a certain branch
live or work a few kilometers away.
In the course of your business, [sales] will slightly
go down, and that means you have to reinvent and repackage.
Last year, this place [the Morato branch] was not air-conditioned,
and we had it air-conned.
My main challenge is to be the top of mind of customers
when it comes to Philippine cuisine. If a balikbayan
comes along and asks, “What’s a good Filipino
restaurant?”, you bring them to Gerry’s Grill.
How do you respond to the
challenge?
The look is important. You have to go with the
times. Whatever is `in' may have to be part of the reinvention
process. You look at the food, service, music. When
we first opened, we played 80s music. After a while, we
said we have to move on.
Our menu now is very different from our first one. Before,
it was more of the beer-pulutan
type. It just catered to the boys and the barkada.
Now, we have a more balanced menu. It’s also been
more family-friendly. We have kids celebrating their birthdays
here.
We are opening in two branches in the US, San Francisco
and LA, among the largest Pinoy communities. There’s
sense of achievement [because we] made it in the US.
Food quality and service have to be consistent.
When a customer comes to us, he has expectations
and we have to meet them. The customer has to feel value
for money, that he had a good meal at the amount he paid.
Sometimes, he notices how slowly the food is served, or
maybe it wasn't cooked well.
We have to compete with the mindsets of the customers
who may prefer to go to other restaurants.
Is there such a thing as
brand loyalty?
Yes, there is variety, but generally a customer will go
to certain restaurants for Chinese food, this restaurant
for Japanese, and that restaurant for Filipino. I’m
not after their preferences for the other kind of cuisine
– but as far as Filipino cuisine is concerned, I’d
want to be their top of mind.
Please tell us about your
career path.
After graduation, I worked in a hamburger franchise for
two to three month. I couldn’t hack it because I had
flat feet and would have to stand ten hours a day in the
store. I was in shock at that time; my quality of life went
down. My friends would go out during the weekends, while
I would be working.
I went to banking where it was more relaxed and the pay
was right. I’d do tellering and accounts. Then, I
tried my luck at marketing in the liquor industry, starting
out as Assistant Brand Manager. I did this for a couple
of years then got retrenched; this was in 1997 during the
Asian economic crisis. There were mergers in the liquor
industries.
For three months, I was jobless, though I did get some
kind of compensation out of the retrenchment. I’d
go around and submit my resumes to offices. I was applying
left and right. Then this consumer product conglomerate
called and offered me an Assistant Product Manager position.
As APM, my challenge was to introduce a juice line
to the slightly order market. Kids used to drink the tetrapack
juices; but after they go to high school, they’d go
to softdrinks. The challenge was to develop juice for high
school teenagers to prolong the continuity in the product
line. I started it but before I could launch it,
I moved to ice cream.
Since my experience was developing flavors, they gave me
a special flavor that would be available for two to three
months only.
It was a very fast-paced development process. I’d
launch two flavors at a time and develop six flavors for
a year. I used to work in research and development a lot.
You’d test the product, promote it, kill it, and then
create a new one. The work would never stop
You’d have to go the extra mile. You ask
yourself and do a lot of test to see if the pricing is right,
if the packaging is acceptable to the customer. Take time
to study each aspect before you launch it, to come up with
the most solid product possible. Of course, there will be
improvements later on.
The training helped me in coping with changes. There are
simple processes that you can apply wherever you are. Now
if I develop a new menu, I apply the same process.
I spent three years in this consumer giant. Then Gerry’s
Grill called.
How was it like coming to
Gerry’s Grill?
When I was new, we were opening the Subic branch, and the
owner and his wife were in the US. They entrusted me with
the opening. I did ask around and for a lot of help. I was
feeling my way around but the opening was successful. It
was difficult, but you have to rise to the occasion.
What are your plans for Gerry’s
Grill
We are still young, even though we have 17 branches. There’s
so much more to do. I keep thinking on where we can grow
over time. We are going to have branches in Ali Mall, Mall
of Asia, Bacolod, and Bohol early this year. I’d want
to be part of that growth. You have to be aggressive in
securing locations.
How do you make sure you’re
on top of your game?
You have to keep constant watch over your competitors.
I do eat around other restaurants and experience how they’re
doing things and check the quality of their food and service.
I size up the dining experience and ask, “What does
this guy have that I don’t?”
Size up the competition. Try to know what they’re
doing and do it first.
Advertise your company and reach out to media partners.
Try different ways and means of promotion.
What advice would you give
young professionals who want to be managers and directors?
Be ready to give out answers during meetings. Show
that you have what it takes.
Be consistent with your work, especially when you
are young.
Come up with solid propositions that show your
bosses how you think and that you are able to handle big
responsibilities.
Prove yourself in bigger tasks and you get bigger
tasks.
When you make mistakes, admit them honestly and
make sure you don’t’ repeat them. Just learn
from them. |
