Franchisee Spotlight: David Taylor, Owner of Rockwall, TX Lenny's Sub Shop

Today, Lenny's will highlight one of their many franchisees, David Taylor of the Lenny's Sub Shop in Rockwall, Texas.

Franchisee Since: July 2010
Franchise Location: Rockwall, TX

How David Taylor Got Started With Lenny’s Sub Shop…
David has a creative eye. When he was making the choice about his future and where to attend college, he chose the Savannah College of Arts and Design. Upon graduating, he parlayed his creativity into a career in the film industry. For the past 24 years, he’s been working in the film industry on the technical end in lighting. While he enjoys working on movies, most of his expertise is focused on commercials. Twenty-four years later and with a six-year-old son, David began his search for his next career move, one that would be fun and rewarding while also being financially sturdy.

David learned about Lenny’s from his friend, Steve Brady, who is also a Lenny’s franchisee. His dad is also a frequent guest at Lenny’s in Pascagoula, MS where he grew up. He became interested in the brand a while ago, and has just recently been able to gain the exclusive rights to his hometown territory, Rockwall. His plan is to develop six restaurants in 10 years, but for now, he’s just getting his feet wet in real estate research.

What intrigued David Taylor about Lenny’s Sub Shop…
It wasn’t just through conversation with his friend, Steve, that convinced David Lenny’s was a stand-out restaurant. He tried the food for himself and confirmed his friend’s accolade of Lenny’s rang true. David said, “It’s just a great sandwich, and the quality of the ingredients we use is a step above.”

The opportunity to become involved within his community also excited David as his film career allows him to work with people all over the world, but didn’t give him the ability to connect with his own local community. David looks forward to making Lenny’s a community partner and especially involving the business in activities where his son will also participate.

Something Interesting About David Taylor’s Story…
David is no amateur to the restaurant business. His brother and brother-in-law own five BBQ restaurants in Mississippi and his family has been in the BBQ business since the 1930’s! While he enjoys BBQ, he was ready to get into another restaurant category and open up shop in his hometown.

Lenny's Featured in Appen Newspapers

More and more franchisees are opening their own businesses from all walks of life. Darren Anthony has a unique entrepreneurial story and was recently interviewed by Appen Newspapers, a family of newspapers in the North Atlanta Metro Area. A Lenny's Lover turned franchisee, Darren, a former Auburn football player, opened his first Lenny's location in Alpharetta last week. A portion of the article is included below and a full version can be seen here.

Auburn player opens sub shop in Alpharetta

ALPHARETTA - Lenny's Sub Shop puts the Authentic Philly Cheesesteaks and The Deli Fresh Experience as top reasons guests prefer this sub sandwich chain over others, and the newest store opened at 1605 Mansell Road, just west of Ga. 400.

Darren Anthony, a former Auburn football player, became one of those loyal customers a year ago when he stopped in the Norcross Lenny's Sub Shop. His own entrepreneurial spirit got kick started after working with other business people for six years within the franchise finance industry.

Sub sandwiches, salads, cookies and the Authentic Philly Cheesesteaks are on the menu. Lenny's caters and delivers. Call 678-461-8773 or visit www.lennys.com. The restaurant is open Monday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday from 11 to 6 p.m.

(READ MORE)

Guest Service 2.0 from Lenny's Sub Shop

Pretend you’ve just gotten home from a long day at work. Exhausted, your one goal in life is to microwave whatever is hiding in the back of your freezer and collapse on the couch. After fishing out a passable frozen dinner and waiting five minutes while cosmic rays bombard it, you make a sad discovery. Inside the black plastic tray is not the sesame chicken with noodles you expected but a greenish-gray mass of indistinguishable origin. What do you do? manyny would curse their luck and reach for the peanut butter, but for some it’s the start of a guest service encounter.

Guest service is one of the most important duties of any venture, no matter if it’s a $15 billion corporation or a mom and pop down the street. Although it’s impossible to keep everyone happy all the time, doing your best to keep guests content with your service and products helps create and maintain a positive brand image and increases word-of- mouth traffic.

In decades past, guest service has been handled over the phone, by mail or in person. Television not working? Call Sears. Chocolate malt milkshake not malty enough? Write a letter. Steak too bloody? Ask to speak with the chef.

The problems plaguing these methods are painfully familiar. They’re slow, unpleasant and, more often that not, rather inefficient. So why is it that so many companies still adhere to these tired and outdated forms of guest service?

Great guest service has always been a key part of the mission at Lenny’s Sub Shops, but recently they’ve taken the concept to the next level by using social media as another point of connection between the franchise and its loyal guests. By addressing guest service issues through Facebook, Lenny’s can solve problems more quickly and in a format many consumers are more comfortable with.

Take Robert, a Lenny’s guest from Arkansas. On a trip to his local Lenny’s, Robert was unsatisfied with a particular element of his trip and, instead of writing an email or calling corporate, he sent a message to Lenny’s Facebook page. Within 24 hours, he had a response from the Facebook page, apologizing for his bad experience and explaining the process by which the local manager would be informed of the situation. In addition, Lenny’s was able to send Robert some swag as an additional form of apology. The exchange clearly impressed Robert, who left a message saying, “I was thinking was never going to hear from somebody at Lenny’s again.”

Social media has many applications, but one of the newest and most promising is guest service. Lenny’s Sub Shops have blazed a trail by responding to guest complaints and questions through their Facebook page, transforming a traditionally slow and tedious process into a quick, efficient way to maximize guest satisfaction and build positive brand image.

Lenny's Featured on Daybreak on the Deuce

Lenny's Sub Shop was recently featured on Denver's Daybreak on the Deuce Morning Show. Lenny's franchisee, Nathan Turner, showed the audience how Lenny's creates its signature breakfast sandwiches, only available at a select few locations. The video clip is posted below.

Franchisee Spotlight: Sam Lampo, Owner of Bryan, TX Lenny's Sub Shop

Today, Sam and Frank Lampo, brothers and franchisees of the Lenny's Sub Shop in Bryan, Texas will be highlighted.

Franchisee Since: July 2008
Franchise Location/s: 3700 S Texas Ave Ste 550, Bryan, TX 77802


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How Sam and Frank Lampo Got Started With Lenny’s Sub Shop…
Sam and his brother, Frank, are experienced business owners and between them, they have 50 years of food and beverage experience. The brothers have owned multiple franchises through the years and Sam had decided to retire. Fifteen years after retirement, Sam’s entrepreneurial spirit kicked back in and he noticed a feature in the Houston Chronicle about Lenny’s. He learned that they were looking for franchisees in the Houston market for expansion opportunities and he jumped on the opportunity. He called his brother, Frank, and they opened their Bryan location in July of 2008.

What Intrigued Sam and Frank Lampo about Lenny’s Sub Shop …
After reading the feature in the paper, Sam and Frank traveled to Houston to experience the brand first hand. They visited multiple locations and fell in love with the proven, established product, along with the superior guest service. What attracted Sam and Frank to the Lenny’s brand was the proven product and the strong brand presence already in existence in Houston. With their experience in the industry, the brothers knew that this success could be replicated in Bryan. They purchased the franchising rights to the entire county in August of 2007. Currently, they have plans to expand into College Station, TX.

Something Interesting About Sam and Frank Lampo’s Story…
Sam and Frank are fourth generation Bryan residents. The Lampo family has lived in Bryan for over 104 years. The family is publicly known around town and has a strong tie to the local community. The brothers work with Habitat for Humanity, local schools, and local hospitals. They also have one of the highest catering ratios in the franchise system and credit much of their catering orders to the local university, Texas A&M.

Lenny's Featured in Oxford Enterprise

Lenny's - Oxford Enterprise - 6.20.10

Franchisee Spotlight: Andy and Jennifer McGee

Each week, Lenny's will highlight a franchisee. This week Lenny's is highlighting multiple! Today, Andy and Jennifer McGee of Daphne, Alabama will be highlighted.

Franchisees Since: March 2007
Franchise Location: 2020 Hwy 98, Daphne, AL

How Andy & Jennifer McGee Got Started with Lenny’s…
Andy graduated college from Harding University and worked as a grill cook for Lenny’s location in Searcy, AR while Jennifer finished her degree. After Jennifer's graduation the couple moved to Mobile, AL where they worked with Chad & Steve Brady at the Bradys' first Mobile location. The couple worked in three of the Bradys' stores before opening their own Lenny's Sub Shop in Daphne in March 2007.

What intrigued Andy & Jennifer McGee about Lenny’s…
Andy and Jennifer were attracted to the culture that surrounds the Lenny’s brand. While managing the Mobile stores Andy fell in love with the way Lenny’s treated their employees and felt that everyone that he worked with was part of a large Lenny’s family. They took pride in the superior guest service that Lenny’s provides and personal relationships the locations build with its guests. Their favorite part of owning Lenny's is the relationships they have with their customers and staff. Most regular customers are greeted by name, and the majority of the staff have several years of seniority, including multiple "original hires" from the store's March 2007 opening.

Something Interesting About Andy& Jennifer McGee’s Story…
Andy and Jennifer live in Fairhope and attend Church on the Eastern Shore. Several families at COTES (including neighbors of the McGees) have adopted children internationally. The McGees traveled to Port de Paix, Haiti in June and began the process of adopting two children. They began the adoption process in February, shortly after the devestating earthquake in Port au Prince. Lenny's guests are kept up to date via a bulletin board in the store, and some patrons donated relief items that the couple took on their trip in June. The couple hopes to bring home their daughter (Wayline) and perhaps a son in 2011.