Yesterday before taking my son to school we stopped off for breakfast at place we had heard about but never been, Sabrina’s Cafe. Typically I’m not one to rave about breakfast. It is really hard to make pancakes, eggs, or home fries truly amazing. Generally speaking it is my humble opinion that breakfast for most restaurants is somewhat of an afterthought.
I ordered the french toast with a side eggs, my son got the kid’s pancakes. By time the food arrived I was starving and was ready to dig in. My first bite of french toast, OMG, then the eggs. These were like I’ve died and gone to heaven scrambled eggs. Just regular old scrambled eggs that somehow were, like Lucky Charms the “most magically delicious” eggs I’d ever tasted. I can’t even describe it. They were scrambled to perfection. Not too soft, not too hard. I don’t know what the fuck, but they were amazing
The french toast. I don’t know where they got this deliciously thick and dense, yet so, so pillowly soft bread. Most places just take two pieces of regular bread, throw it in some egg batter and call it a day. Not Sabrinas. If they gave out Michelin Stars for breakfast, they most certainly would get 3 stars, which is the highest you can get.
I can’t stop telling people about my experience. I was so moved I it inspired my blog post. This is what Seth Godin talks about when he talks about getting ideas to spread. Here is a link to his Ted talk, which has been viewed almost 5 million times.
There is another company in my area, a local brewery, called Tired Hands that creates a product people talk about. They have a tribe.
On Sunday mornings, each month they release a new edition of their craft brews. You will see the most unlikely cast of characters, waiting in line, sometimes hundreds of them, hung over, with their hipster beards and tight pants hoping they get their growler filled before the beer is gone. I guarantee there is absolutely nothing else that would get these people up at 6:00 am on a Sunday morning besides, possibly tickets to see Mumford and Sons.
You get ideas or products to spread by being remarkable. If a product or service is remarkable you will tell other people, they will tell then tell other people and it starts to catch on. You build a “tribe” as Mr. Godin calls it. Your tribe is a loyal group of customers, fans that you have created by being remarkable. These people will walk to the ends of the earth for you. They will get up at 6:00am, hung-over and feeling like shit to buy what you are selling.
This is the type of business I’m looking to create. Maybe I’ve gone about selling it all wrong. Consumers might not be willing to spend the $ money while grocery shopping on a $4 brownie. Maybe I need to pivot?
I started my business because I want to create something remarkable. I want to make a brownie people cannot live without. I wanted it to be remarkable. But maybe I need to rethink my business model?
How can I find people who are willing to pay for the quality inherent in the baked goods I want to make? Maybe the grocery store or specialty food shop is not the right place for us. I’m not saying that I can’t make the best product, charge a premium and sell it in grocery stores; there just might be a better way of reaching the customer I’m looking for.
Tired Hands Brewery does not bottle their beers for sale in retail stores. They only sell direct via their brew pubs as well as on tap at restaurants. This is a consciousness decision on their part. Packaging their beer for sale in cans or bottles, affects the quality and making the best beer is what drives them.
I want to be the best at what I do. Not the cheapest, or prettiest, or the best value. I want to make the BEST brownie, period.
I’m going to refocus on why I started this business in the first place, to create something that people can’t stop talking about. I want to be remarkable; I want my business to be remarkable. I want my brownies to be so good that you can’t help but tell other people about them. You will wait in line at 6:00am on a rainy, cold Sunday morning, just to make sure you get one.
As I finish typing this in my local coffee shop, I heard the manger say one of her employees wants to be paid in jars of Martinellis Apple Juice. He loves it that much. He can’t get enough Martinellis apple juice.
Can I make a brownie that someone would accept as payment for a job well done? Hell yeah!!
Finding Faith 