WEBVTT - Tony Roma's New CEO Talks Brand Transformation

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. Well, Tony Romas is

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<v Speaker 1>getting a refresh.

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<v Speaker 2>The fifty two year old restaurant change is undergoing a

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<v Speaker 2>transformation under its first female CEO. I am thrilled to

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<v Speaker 2>say she joins us on set now, Mina Hawk, Tony

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<v Speaker 2>Roma's CEO.

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<v Speaker 1>Great to see you in person.

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<v Speaker 3>Thank you, thank you for having me here today.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, absolutely so.

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<v Speaker 2>The teas for this block was that you want to

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<v Speaker 2>be a fifty two year old startup, walk us through

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<v Speaker 2>what that means.

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<v Speaker 3>So Tony Romas has been around for a long time,

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<v Speaker 3>since nineteen seventy two it opened its door in Miami, Florida.

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<v Speaker 3>The company went through what I like to say is

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<v Speaker 3>all types of challenges, but nevertheless it has been a

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<v Speaker 3>resilient brand. And now what I'm doing is reimagining the

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<v Speaker 3>brand to see how we can make it resilient and adaptable.

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<v Speaker 3>And the core focus is on our product on our menu.

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<v Speaker 3>Food industry is the fastest evolving industry with consumer demands

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<v Speaker 3>always changing. Therefore, you need to keep up with the technology.

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<v Speaker 3>You need to see how you can do like you know,

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<v Speaker 3>co creation of partnership, and that's what I'm doing and

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<v Speaker 3>most importantly internally focusing on my talent development.

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<v Speaker 4>We're going to want to talk more about that menu

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<v Speaker 4>and of course the technology, but also want to know

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<v Speaker 4>about locations because you sat down and you said you're

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<v Speaker 4>going to change that. When we asked you about the locations,

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<v Speaker 4>the closest one to New York City, you said is Durham,

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<v Speaker 4>North Carolina. How are you going to expand in different

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<v Speaker 4>areas in the United States.

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<v Speaker 3>Absolutely, it's about, you know, creating the value for consumers.

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<v Speaker 3>At this point, we have about ten locations in the

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<v Speaker 3>United States, all dispersed. We have the nearest location is

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<v Speaker 3>North Carolina from here, but we have two locations in

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<v Speaker 3>California in Vegas and Iowa and Florida. I see that

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<v Speaker 3>we will be able to change once the consumers will

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<v Speaker 3>be able to see the value that we offer. And

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<v Speaker 3>most importantly, our primary business model is franchising. What I'm

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<v Speaker 3>trying to do is reducing the franchising cost, making it

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<v Speaker 3>easier for potential franchises to enter into the market. Otherwise,

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<v Speaker 3>in any type of franchising industry, it's very difficult because

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<v Speaker 3>it's so cost heavy. Therefore, if you can reduce the

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<v Speaker 3>operating cost. In addition, to that. The menu use items

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<v Speaker 3>were very saturated. Back in the days we used to

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<v Speaker 3>offer a lot of items. I'm streamlining that as well,

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<v Speaker 3>making sure it's cost effective.

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<v Speaker 5>I mean, the food obviously is first and foremost in

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<v Speaker 5>a restaurant, but I feel like talent comes in a

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<v Speaker 5>close second. And you said, you know, talent development is

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<v Speaker 5>one of your biggest focuses.

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<v Speaker 1>How difficult is.

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<v Speaker 5>It in today's labor market because you've got to pay

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<v Speaker 5>people a lot.

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<v Speaker 3>That is a great question. We are working remotely at

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<v Speaker 3>this point, which is attractive for the talent poop because

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<v Speaker 3>everyone wants flexibility, and that is one of my core focus.

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<v Speaker 3>How can we strike a balance by being flexible yet

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<v Speaker 3>ensure that the performance is there and that requires boosting

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<v Speaker 3>the moral of your team. And part of the reason,

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<v Speaker 3>I believe is because of the advent of technology, people

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<v Speaker 3>no longer want to come and work in the industry anymore.

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<v Speaker 3>People embrace entrepreneurial spirit, you know, especially young folks thinking, okay,

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<v Speaker 3>we can go to TikTok or Instagram and create our

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<v Speaker 3>own career, which is absolutely fine. But I want Tony

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<v Speaker 3>Romas to be a stepping stone, a place where people

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<v Speaker 3>can come learn and.

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<v Speaker 2>Thrive interesting of course, so using that remote work as

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<v Speaker 2>a recruiting tool. Basically, I do want to talk a

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<v Speaker 2>little bit about pricing because you mentioned creating value for

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<v Speaker 2>customers and we were just talking about high labor expenses.

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, you think about the consumer, the people who

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<v Speaker 2>are spending money at your restaurant definitely feeling the pinch there.

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<v Speaker 1>So how are you handling pricing right now? Have you

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<v Speaker 1>had to cut costs of course as things get more competitive.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, the review for pricing it's, you know, based on

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<v Speaker 3>a three sixty degree review. What we have figured out

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<v Speaker 3>is you focus on the stars of your menu and

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<v Speaker 3>then the items that are doing well offer that back

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<v Speaker 3>to your consumers. Because the food price is skyrocketing right now,

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<v Speaker 3>and it also depends like how many location you have,

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<v Speaker 3>and we definitely don't have as many locations as our competitors,

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<v Speaker 3>so we don't have that many buying power. Nevertheless, our

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<v Speaker 3>core focus is to make sure that it is a

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<v Speaker 3>price friendly because traditionally Tony Romas has served families and

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<v Speaker 3>there are so many you know, memories that are associated

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<v Speaker 3>with the brand. Right now, we are in control of

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<v Speaker 3>pricing for our corporate unit location, which is bones and

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<v Speaker 3>Burgers in Tampa, Florida, and then the rest of the

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<v Speaker 3>location we have. The pricing is determined by the local

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<v Speaker 3>market condition by our franchise partners.

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<v Speaker 5>I mean a great having it in the studio. Thanks

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<v Speaker 5>so much for visiting us here in New York. Mohammedy

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<v Speaker 5>the Hawk is the CEO of Tony Romas.