Jozef

Graduated from University in Manchester, UK, back in 2003. I had studied Business and IT so I started working for a satellite internet service provider. Within 2 years I had switched to a satellite TV channel provider (one of the 2 largest in the Middle East) as the sales and operations manager, with a staff of 17 people.

I still had not found myself in this position even though it was a great position for such a young guy and afforded me a good lifestyle.

After having discussed the idea of opening a restaurant with a friend, we finally decided to take the leap. It was to be a gourment delivery service, catering mainly to office workers in the city for lunch. We spent hours discussing it and planning, developing a brand and comming up with a logo.. and then FOOD 4 THOUGHT (F4T) was born.

I quit my job so I could be dedicated to the business. I started by washing dishes, helping with deliveries, answering the phone and generally managing the staff. Bit by bit, due to staff turnover, I found my self in the kitchen. This was very new to me. I had always enjoyed cooking, but now I was to charge for my cooking, so one way or the other it had to be great. I began reading and learning about kitchen hygiene, safety and managment. At the same time I taught my self the basics in food preperation that I would ned for the menu at hand. Bit by bit, I learnt the skills needed and finally I had a well organised kitchen producing great food.

Finally I had found my calling. I had grown to love cooking so much that I decided I wanted to be a chef or at least be a great cook and spend the rest of my life in the business. I started off with Italian dishes, then realised that true technique was in French cooking.

I worked 14 hour days, 6 days a week, i was financially broke all the time and ironically would not have money for food at times (i refused to live off the restaurant), the working conditions were hard with tempratures reaching above 50C in the kitchen (this is kuwait don't forget). I was taken into hospital for dehydration once and another time to have my appendix taken out, both times I was at work the day after discharge from the hospital. Dispite al that I still loved it. But after a year of this things were still looking bleak for our business. Our main problem was bad location choice, which we had made as we couldn't afford any better.

Eventually I decided that the business had to close as I didn't want it to come between my friendship with my partner, he had invested significantly more than I had by this time, as I had given up work.

I set out to sell the business. I thought perhaps I could find some one who would inject some cash into a good concept. After many meetings, alot of false hope and some all out rejection, I had a meeting with a restaurant that had been a competitor (of lesser quality) called PANINI. They were not interested in taking on the F4T brand I had built, but they did want to develop there restaurant to be like F4T, in terms of branding, quality and managment. And so I now work for them, I have made dramatic changes to the menu, branding and logo. I have refurbished the old store and opened a new one as well as changing the operations of the central kitchen and hiring new staff.

I have introduced proped guidlines and systems covering administative issues to operational ones.

I have refined the menu, using menu engineering (and am even working on a second version), introduced portioning to the central kitchen, and conduct staff trainning sessions (I learnt trainning skills while at the satellite TV company). I have been at PANINI for 8 months now and I am planning for third and fourth stores