Franchise News Release: Des Moines, IA - (Jul-1-2003)

Maid-Rite Featured in QSR Magazine

Maid-Rite Corporation is pleased to announce that the following article, written by Kim Dimson, was published in the Managing section of the April issue of QSR magazine (www.qsrmagazine.com).

A Rite of Passage
As legend has it, 76 years ago butcher Fred Angell of Muscatine, Iowa, asked a deliveryman to try his combined special-cut ground meat and spices. Upon surveying the sandwich, the deliveryman was quoted as saying, "You know, Fred, this sandwich is just made right." Hence the name, and the brand, that has since established itself as a staple in the Midwest. But, although Maid-Rite president and CEO Bradley L. Burt cannot be credited with inventing the "loose meat" sandwich, he definitely deserves recognition for his rigorous foresight.

Two years ago, Burt was managing his own marketing consulting firm, Burt Marketing in Des Moines, Iowa, when he was hired by persons whom Burt refers to as "the Gillotti Family," to help Maid-Rite with its marketing strategy. During his stint as marketing consultant for Maid-Rite, he learned that the owners were looking to sell their 78-store company.

Burt attributes his banking and business background, as well as marketing expertise, for revealing to him Maid-Rite's blinding potential. From what Burt could see, the opportunity to implement brand standards and grow the company into a nation-wide chain was overwhelming. Not wanting to miss the opportunity at hand, Burt declares, "I bought it real quick," making him the fourth owner since 1926.

That was in January 2002. Nine months later, Burt and his management team - which reads like a Who's Who of restaurateurs - developed the fundamentals for Maid-Rite University.

As Burt explained, the idea for Maid-Rite U was born from a need to be successful. He believes at the core of success is training. If you don't know how to do something, how can you be successful?" says Burt. The "something" he refers to is operating a Maid-Rite franchise. With the help of folks like Subway maven, Tom Ryan and Burger King's JC Jurkiewicz, Burt created training manuals, employee handbooks, and operation standards to act as quick-reference guides for new franchisees. Although the first class of 10 students has just gotten underway, Maid-Rite U may prove to be just the panacea Burt had hoped for.

The 10-day training course, which is located at Maid-Rite headquarters in Des Moines, includes a host of classes along side on-the-job training. "The educational part is hands-on. Cooking, cleaning, ordering - franchisees learn to do everything that managers do," says Burt.

He adds, "We have meeting rooms that are self-contained, and we use corporate-owned restaurants and corporate offices." Although the curriculum ranges from learning trouble-shooting tactics to human resource issues like hiring and firing employees, Maid-Rite U might be better described as a crash-course in dedication.

"We're going to talk about who we are. That's what Maid-Rite University is about," says Burt.

Who and what the Maid-Rite Corporation is, is exemplified by Burt's defined purpose for Maid-Rite U. "It's to educate our owners/operators on what we deem the important keys of success: serve people great-tasting food in a clean and friendly environment," he says. "That's all we want because we realize that if you put people out there who aren't trained, then you compromise your success.

By Burt's estimation, successful franchisees possess the same three essential qualities: "consistency, cleanliness and strong customer service," adding that "quality and uniformity are also good to remember."

The cost to own and operate a Maid-Rite Restaurant starts as low as $175,000, which includes "the Franchise fee of $15,000, all equipment, furniture, fixtures, inventory?signage and working capital in a leased premise." Although "tuition" to attend Maid-Rite U is covered under the franchise fee, Burt says, "franchisees must pay their way to Iowa - hotel, food and transportation."

Burt describes the profile of a Maid-Rite franchisee this way: "Most people who are franchisees have business experience." Additionally, the average age of a Maid-Rite franchisee - according to Burt - falls somewhere in the mid-forties because franchisees are typically "early retirees who decide to get back in [sic] in something." Burt adds that men and women are represented equally as franchise owners, since couples usually decide to start a franchise together.

While the 10-day course doesn't allow time for a mid-term exam, franchisees have graduation requirements to fulfill and they are evaluated daily by their instructors. Burt explained that instructors are careful to look for excessive tardiness, disorganization, or chronic absenteeism in trainees, to help them gauge the trainee's level of commitment.

Following a day's work either on location in a Maid-Rite restaurant or in the classroom, Burt Says, "every night there's a review session. But evening training also means cleaning the restrooms. Then trainees are back in the morning to open the restaurant," he concludes.

Thought his might sound like boot camp, Burt is quick to distinguish Maid-Rite U's intent from other franchisee training programs, saying,"We don't beat people up. At Maid-Rite, our job is to help people. When they leave us, they're better off - for being respectful."

Coincidentally, Burt subscribes to the notion that self-respect has a direct impact one's business acumen. Managers and employees are required to report to work well-groomed. "Their hair should be presentable and their shirt and pants pressed," explains Burt. But don't mistake Burt's affection for good hygiene as superficiality, or even as stiff. At the heart of his Midwestern philosophy is a strong belief in the "Maid-Rite Way."

Our whole belief is that if we educate our people - educate, not train - they will be better able to serve our customers day in and day out."

From the point of graduation, Burt says franchisees are one to two months away from opening their own restaurant. Franchisees needn't feel gun-shy about going it alone. Maid-Rite has established core programs to aid in supporting them post-graduation. In addition to bi-annual internal audits and mystery shoppers, Burt and his management team are also "creating and advisory board of franchisees, per region, for new and exciting franchisees to meld together. The new ones can ask questions. And we'll have an annual meeting to discuss where we're going [as a company] in the new year, "he says.

The support doesn't end there; Burt says the Maid-Rite Corporation will train employees for new Maid-Rite Franchises onsite prior to the restaurant's opening. "It's what we call a 'quiet opening.' It's easier for employees to work out the bugs slowly. So we would rather people find out about [the new restaurant] by word of mouth."

That should be easy to accomplish, considering Maid-Rite's growing customer base. The Midwestern company that introduced the loose-meat sandwich is now gaining notoriety in other regions as well. "We get calls weekly where people ask 'When are you coming to Arizona?' People know who we are," says Burt. "Our name says it all."

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Maid-Rite
Name Says It All! Maid-Rite is one of America's first quick food service, casual dining franchise restaurants. With a reputation for doing whatever it takes for our customer's satisfaction Maid-Rite has been serving great tasting made to order food at an affordable price for decades.

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