Article

Menchie's CEO taking fro-yo global

Amit Kleinberger discusses how smiles are key to growing his business into the largest fro-yo chain in the world.

July 26, 2013 by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

At age 33, the CEO of Menchie's, Amit Kleinberger, has done more than most will in a lifetime. In less than five years, the former Israeli soldier helped to grow the brand from one store to more than 300, operating in 33 states and nine countries. Before his reign over fro-yo began, however, he started his own party business at age 13, and continued to launch, grow and sell a series of start-ups, including a chain of cellular phone equipment stores, a window and glass distribution company and assisted living building for Alzheimer's and dementia care.

In the midst, he also survived a near-death experience when he was nearly run over by a hijacked bus while serving in the army. That's a whole other story, but given all that life experience packed into 33 years, it's not surprising that Kleinberger makes growing a fro-yo empire look simple.

His secret has less to do with fancy business operations and more to with making customers smile. It may sound cheesy, but that focus has led to the brand's explosive growth — another 300 units are in development — Kleinberger said.

Amit Kleinberger, CEO of Menchie's

"There are, of course, several factors, but the main one is that we don't focus on what we do. We focus on why we do it," he said. "Customers buy why you do it; not what you do. Everything we do is focused on the why."

That means the chain works hard to recruit employees with a "Purposeful value set and core vision and people who want to make you smile," Kleinberger said. "We do it in our office, with our team, franchisees, guests — we simply build the organization — 3,000 team members — just on the foundation of making people smile."

Growth is not an objective

Growth, Kleinberger said, should never be an objective. If that's the only objective, a business will fail.

"Growth is a result of doing the right thing and the right time with the right people, and if all those things are right, that's when the magic happens," he said.

Specifically, the Menchie's magic is a three-pronged approach that ensures that: Each store delivers a fun atmosphere, a best- in-class product and world-class service, said Kleinberger, who also admitted that hitting all three objectives is easier said than done but is possible. Here's how he does it:

1. Fun atmosphere
"When you walk into any of our stores, you know you will have fun; it's in our design, our layout, our team members — how we train them — how customers can interact with the brand. We have little characters; we are family friendly, and you immediately identify that when you walk in," Kleinberger said.

2. Best in class
Many brands are good, but to succeed in this market, Menchie's must be great, said Kleinberger, who describes "great" as the ability to deliver consistency on brand commitment.

"We really want make to make the world's greatest-tasting fro-yo in the greatest store environment all the time," he said. "Anyone can be great for one day, but we want to sustain that greatness."

3. Customer service
Customer service is one area in which most businesses say they excel, but Kleinberger disagrees.

"I'm talking about real customer service, not just saying it. When you walk in, these people frantically care, and when you get that winning formula and can deliver that different experience — that's the business that goes from good to great."

After screening employees for what Kleinberger describes as a enough potential, Menchie's staff coaches them using a "heavily proprietary system of training" in which he wouldn't elaborate. He did say that surrounding your business with people who care about the world and then giving them the proper tools to succeed is the secret to growing.

Besides employing caring team members, the brand also relies on technology to make its customers feel important. For example, Menchie's recently launched its loyalty program — mySmileage — that reached 750,000 participants in the first six months alone. Its iPhone App, Yumm Finder, helps guests locate stores and find featured promotions, and lastly, customers are connecting with the brand via its new mobile game — Smile World — a multi-level game featuring four minigames available on iPhone and iPad.

Culture comes first

Like most CEOs, Kleinberger is pulled into a million different directions each day, but his top priority is developing the culture of Menchie's. That means caring about how he can propel Menchie's focus on making the world a better place, having fun while being productive and working to collaborate as a team.

"We care about our team — we care about each one, about their life, accomplishments, what they wanna do, how they wanna grow, and they can see that," he said. "If you build the right culture and give people the right tools, it's amazing what humans can do."

Building a business to help the world

Kleinberger doesn't have a specific number of units he hopes to open or a specific revenue goal to hit. He measures his success and growth by how many people the chain makes smile.

"When I look at my business today and ask 'Why do I feel proud?' it's because it makes the world a better place," he said. "I ask myself if the world is better off by having my business than not. Are we doing something good for the world? Are we delivering an added value; that's the most important benchmark in how are we doing."

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About Cherryh Cansler

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Cherryh Cansler is VP of Events for Networld Media Group and publisher of FastCasual.com. She has been covering the restaurant industry since 2012. Her byline has appeared in Forbes, The Kansas City Star and American Fitness magazine, among many others.

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