Food Network: Kitchen Impossible

For those of you who know the show, the actual title is Restaurant Impossible. Chef "Robert" comes in and takes a losing location and its staff, evaluates, takes charge, bosses people around and in 2 days has a money losing dump turned into a money making gem. Anytime I've walked in and my bride is watching the show, I confess it has drawn me in, because it's fascinating. But in my mind, what I see are not restaurants, but community or retail locations in our industry that need a turn-around.

I watched one man whose restaurant was a disaster call Robert's process, "tough love." $10,000 and two days (I'm guessing travel expenses are on top of that cost) transforms a failing restaurant's decor. "The buzz and excitement" from the customers who are wow'd at the transformation, improved food and service make it all worth while.

"If you own a failing restaurant, call us at…" Restaurant Impossible at Food Network, they proclaim. Some do, and they watch profits for owners and tips for staff shoot up.

Robert (left) photo credit Food Network

MH Community Impossible?

How many know (or have…) an "impossible" MHCommunity (or MH Retail Center)? Sales are flat or down. Vacancies are growing and residents are unhappy. Plus the location looks (bow wow) ruff, ruff?

Restaurant Stakeout?

Food Network's (FN) Restaurant Stakeout with Willie Degel is a similar concept to what Robert does. Degel sets hidden cameras and finds who has been doing (or not doing) what at a restaurant. But you may wonder, can you do similarly in an MH Community or retail center? Yes.

It is no joy to say that in working with some locations, I've found employee theft, fraud and abuse. It can happen anywhere, but seems more common when refurb work is being done. We've found invoices that had ballooned to three times the value of the refurb job. Do you want somebody pocketing your money?

I've also listened to staff say the most outrageous things, even knowing (because they were told up front) they might be recorded for later playback. The bane (and beauty) of habits are that if you have a bad habit, it reveals itself. If you have – or form – a good habit, that reveals itself too as you create the processes for lasting success.

48 hours?

We can't do turn-arounds in an MH location in 48 hours, because MHCs and MHRCs are far more challenging than a quick restaurant makeover. Often, you have to clean house and start over with an MH location's staff if they are unwilling to change (they don't do that in the broadcast TV shows above). But we have seen MHC and MHRC locations start the turn around in 48 hours; and we've seen in 48 days money losing locations start turning or growing profits.

Fear, Rules, Regulations

FN's Willie Degel says you don't run a charity, you run a business. You are giving people a job and opportunities. They have to be trained to follow the rules and regulations. Degel says staff have to 'fear' losing their job, or they will take over and run wild. His under cover cameras prove the points. He uses stop watches to time service. He has stealth customers test the staff. "An untrained and undisciplined staff" can put you out of business. But the reverse is true, a well trained staff usually feels better about themselves and their work, and they will make their owners money!

When MHCs have 250,000 – 500,000 vacancies…

In most MHC cases, there are no good reason for 250,000-500,000 vacancies in U.S., when the quality affordable housing is what Americans need! In a matter of days, you can start a location turnaround and in a matter of weeks, you can be making more money. Sales and satisfaction rises and those vexing vacancies vanish.

Got a failing location?

Have the resources and commitment to make the change? Showcasing actual results from border to border, we have done presentations at state associations that aren't reality TV, but that do show real life turn-around stories. Event attendees are busy making notes at those popular sessions.

Beyond profits, another real reward is that a good turn-around story often draws positive local media that is itself can be worth more that the turn-around investment.

Unlike some reality shows, we are not about embarrassing you on TV, but by working together – team work – you can go to the next level, see MHC-MD.com. ##

PS: Check our many Exclusive and Red Hot Featured Articles for January and see the

other new stories at MHLivingNews.com too.

L. A. "Tony" Kovach